Strange Sensations
by Liza45
Summary: Modern times story. Slightly OOC, but not too much. Disclaimer: I do not own the Dr Quinn Medicine Woman characters. They belong to CBS.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1** \- _St Catherine's Hospital - Colorado Springs_

With the growing number of inhabitants, the hospitals in Colorado Springs were more and more solicited by lots of patients with injuries, diseases and, inevitably, deaths. Dr Mortimer Clifford, Head of the medical team of _St Catherine's Hospital_, had therefore asked for a meeting of the Medical Board in order to propose the engagement of at least one more doctor, better even two, but he realised that such a demand might not be granted straightaway, since the hospital, being a privately owned facility, had to carefully manage its financial resources to ensure remaining operational.

Convocations were sent out by his secretary, Mrs Jennings, for Thursday, April 21, 2005, 10 o'clock sharp in the morning. With only one item on the agenda to be treated, Dr Clifford hoped to be able to end the meeting by lunchtime.

On Thursday April 21, looking around the conference room, he noticed that all members of the Board of Directors were present, so the meeting could begin. "Gentlemen, I thank you for coming to this meeting, I promise it will be short, because there's only one single point I'd like to discuss with you." They looked up at him, some of the attendees already having an idea what the subject of this meeting was going to be.

"The number of inhabitants in Colorado Springs is increasing steadily and, with the reputation that we have been able to build up for our hospital, thanks to our team of doctors, nurses and all other personnel assisting us in the daily care for our patients, I have noticed that it is becoming more and more difficult to cope with the number of patients we have to treat. I therefore ask you, as members of the Board of Directors, to allow me to search for one or two doctors to add to the existing team." An animated discussion had ensued, and, once all the pro's and contra's had been brought forward, it was decided to start looking for one doctor, with the option of seeking a second doctor if one would prove to be insufficient. Relieved at this relatively easy outcome, Mortimer called the end of the meeting, promising to keep the Board posted on the results of the ads he intended to place in some of the important newspapers, such as the _New York Times_, the _Boston Globe_ and the _Los Angeles Times_.

_Boston, Quinn Residence_  
Since she was a little girl, it had been clear that Michaela, the fifth daughter of Josef and Elizabeth Quinn, was an exceptionally bright child. She was so curious that by the age of three years old, she had pestered everybody in her surroundings so much to write down the letters of the alphabet for her, that subsequently she had kmanaged to teach herself to read. Once she had mastered that skill, she read anything that she came across. Her parents, at a loss what to do with such a precocious child, had decided to talk of this problem with some of their friends, who all had children more or less the same age. The outcome of these discussions was that a private teacher was hired to teach the basic skills of reading and writing and some arithmetic, to a small group of young children, all eager to learn but not yet old enough to go to school. Michaela, even though she was the youngest of them all, proved to be the fastest pupil of the small class and the teacher, Miss Anne Harper, was amazed at the eagerness of this very young, inquisitive child. Michaela adored Miss Anne, not only because Miss Anne could answer all her questions, but also because Miss Anne listened and understood this little girl better than Elizabeth Quinn, her own mother, did.

Michaela, at a very young age, had also understood what it meant that her father, Josef Quinn, was a medical doctor, she knew that he took care of sick people. So she solemnly proclaimed all her dolls to be sick, they were bedridden and kept in a ward she had created in the dolls' house with miniature cots, so that she could constantly administer treatment with a choice of bandages, creams and plasters. Her parents watched their fifth child with utter astonishment, their other four daughters, Michaela's sisters, had never shown the slightest interest either in medicine nor in any other subject apart from dolls, dolls' houses and miniature kitchen apparel. When the group of youngsters had reached the age where their learning subjects became more serious, Miss Anne remained in the Quinn household as a personal companion for Michaela and another teacher, Mr Tom Pointer was hired to continue the home schooling of the children. He was more than surprised at the knowledge acquired so far by Michaela, he had never come across such a young child, so advanced in her learning.

When came the time to start high school, Michaela's parents encountered quite a few problems for their relatively young daughter to be admitted and only after some serious discussions with both her parents and Michaela herself, she was allowed to enroll. High school was not a very nice experience for her. Her classmates resented her, looked upon her as being too young to be tolerated and made life for Michaela quite challenging. Luckily, from the first day she set foot in the school, she was taken under the wings of Miriam Tilson, who was in the same class as Michaela, but who was of course a few years older. The other youngsters in the class failed to see why they would put up with such a _baby_ in their class, but Miriam, a sturdy no-nonsense character, with great expertise put everybody in their place as far as the acceptance of Michaela Quinn was concerned. Yet she never integrated and always felt to be an outsider. Being such a brilliant student, it was no wonder that she always had the best notes, which did not improve the level of acceptance from the other children.

She graduated with the highest distinction, but even that did not make her any more popular with the others, except of course Miriam, who had stood her ground and defended her friend through all their years in high school. From high school, Michaela moved on to Medical School, as usual graduating with honours and now proud to be a medical doctor. She was offered a job at the _Boston Memorial Hospital_, where, together with her father, she worked for many years, becoming one of the finest physicians they had ever had. She was admired and praised, but behind her back, the gossip was inevitable, criticising the very evident bond with her father. The fact that she came from one of Boston's older and wealthier families, was reason for quite some envy.

Michaela would give anything if she could return in time and avoid that fateful day when her father had so suddenly died of a massive heart attack. The pain and sorrow were so deep, that Michaela thought she would never manage to get over this loss. The house had become silent. Since his sudden death, Michaela and her mother had tried to continue life as usual, but it proved to be too difficult. Everything reminded Michaela of her father, whom she had adored, whereas with her mother, she had far less in common. Her mother had never understood her youngest daughter. For her, she would have liked a life along the same lines as her four elder daughters, which consisted of finishing schools, finding a suitable husband and participating in the upper class social life in Boston. But Michaela never had demonstrated any interest in such activities. She had willingly submitted to the piano lessons, as well as the dancing lessons, which she found to be great fun, she discovered that she loved dancing, so she had no problem to accept to go to the balls and other social gatherings where young people of the upper class were supposed to mingle and form suitable couples.

Even though Michaela had grown to be a stunningly beautiful young woman with the most luscious auburn hair, a perfect line, not too tall nor too small, most eligible young men, once they got to know her, realised they could not keep up with her vast general knowledge and quick wittedness. Furthermore, Michaela never hid the fact that none of these young men interested her more than for just a dance and it soon became known that any attempt to ask her for a date, would categorically be refused. None of the young men cherished the idea of rejection, so slowly but surely the attempts were abandoned, to Michaela's complete contentment. Yet for her, life in Boston became more and more intolerable, so she told her mother she was seriously thinking of seeking employment elsewhere in the country, far from Boston, to escape being constantly reminded of her father. For once, her mother had shown understanding and so it had happened that one evening, reading the Boston Globe, Michaela's mother stumbled upon the ad placed in that newspaper by a Dr Mortimer Clifford, looking to fill the vacancy for a medical doctor in St Catherine's Hospital in Colorado Springs. Without a moment's hesitation, Michaela sent in her application and, to her surprise, she was shortly afterwards invited for a personal interview.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2** \- _St Catherine's Hospital - Colorado Springs_

Dorothy Jennings had been Dr Clifford's secretary for well over a decade. Their working relationship was a pleasant one, Mortimer knew he could count on Dorothy to remind him of important and unimportant issues and Dorothy, in turn, was grateful for having been able to secure a job where they did not so much ask for your educational level, but where your professional experience was considered to be a better indication of your competence. Years ago, she had fled and divorced an abusive husband and was completely happy in her life raising her three children who were all adults now, living their own lives. Her oldest daughter was about to become a mother for the first time and Dorothy was thrilled at the thought of becoming a grandmother. She had never felt the need nor the urge to seek any other relationship with a man, the disastrous experiences with her ex-husband having cured her for the rest of her life. She was more than content to live her life as she pleased, with a pleasant job at the hospital and many a joyful party with her friends and acquaintances.

Today was the day the various candidates were to come in for their personal interviews and, when Dr Clifford entered her office, Dorothy gently reminded him of the four interviews that were to take place, starting in the morning and ending in the afternoon. She had sent word to all the members of the Board of Directors, because Dr Clifford did not wish to be alone in choosing a suitable candidate. Dorothy had been more than pleased to see that there was a young female candidate, the other three were men. If only the young woman would be chosen, she would very much appreciate it, she thought. The medical team as it was at present, was an all-male entity and it was not always easy to handle these rather self-assured, sometimes even arrogant, young doctors in her day-to-day communication with them. However, Dr Clifford seemed to be a very capable head of the team, keeping all noses in the same direction, namely the care for their patients. Under his careful guidance, the hospital rejoiced in an excellent reputation, stretching far beyond the city boundaries of Colorado Springs.

At nine o'clock that morning, the first candidate announced himself, the interview lasting for slightly over an hour. He was dismissed with the promise that he would receive a letter informing him of the decision of the Board. The same procedure was followed with the other three candidates, interrupted only by a short lunchbreak.

After the last candidate had left, the members of the Board and Dr Clifford remained in the conference room to exchange their ideas on the four possibilities they now had to choose from. Inevitably the discussion turned to the third candidate, a young woman of exceptional beauty, catching the eye of each person assisting in the interview. She had made an unexpected impression on them all, not only by her appearance, but also with her extraordinary intelligence, her achievements so far and, last but not least, her three specializations in pediatrics, geriatrics and cardiology. They had taken notice of her curriculum, awed by the young age at which she had graduated not only from high school, but also from medical school. She had blushed when they had complimented her on the fact that she had achieved all this in such a short time and she had responded that her young age was the main reason for her specializations, since she did not feel ready to face the challenge of actually treating patients, when she would be regarded as being just one of the nurses, instead of a graduated physician. Finally, working side by side with her father, she had been given the opportunity to prove to herself and her colleagues that she was a highly qualified physician, fully enjoying and never regretting her choice of profession.

Even though some of the members of the Board as well as Dr Clifford himself, were reluctant to offer the position to a woman doctor to function in a team consisting of solely male doctors, after discussing the matter, they all agreed that this doctor, Miss Michaela Quinn, MD, who had come on the plane from Boston for this interview, was the best candidate of all four. To her great joy, Dorothy received instructions to address letters of regret to the three male candidates and a letter of acceptance to the one and only female candidate, Dr Michaela Quinn, MD, from Boston. Curious about this future new doctor and colleague, Dorothy couldn't help but google her and the information she was able to find on the internet, left her speechless. This young woman had apparently broken all sorts of records: youngest to graduate from high school, with the highest notes, junior chess champion, youngest to graduate from medical school, also with the highest distinction, the list went on and on. Dorothy was awestruck, this new colleague certainly was a lady not to be ignored. The little Dorothy had seen, was very positive. Apparently Miss Quinn was not impressed by her many talents, but had kept a pleasant and warm way of conversing and treating all persons she encountered with respect and concern.

During the weeks following the interviews, Mortimer had a hard time keeping his thoughts focussed on his various tasks. He kept thinking of the stunningly beautiful new doctor who would soon join them to fill the vacancy on the medical team. She had made a lasting impression on him and, when he thought of her, he lost all notion of time and surrounding. He pondered on his many years of marriage with his wife Lilian, eighteen, to be exact. He remembered how they met, how madly in love they had been, but as is the case with most marriages which he had observed over the years, nothing much was left of that first passion. True, he loved and respected his wife, but their interests had slowly but surely diverged into different directions. In the past few years, he had noticed how he had become attracted to other women, without ever crossing the line of cheating on his wife, for that matter he was too much imprisoned in the rules and regulations of society of his time as well as the restrictions imposed on him by his rigorous upbringing and religious beliefs. Yet the fact that he had felt a certain interest towards others than his own wife, had not gone unnoticed to himself.

They had been blessed with two sons, twins, who were in their teens now, doing fairly well in high school, but also at times up to some stupid mischief which had already cost him quite some money to mend things with the various victims of his sons' stupidity, thus avoiding any criminal records to be kept in their names. Dorothy had noticed the recent change in her boss and wondered what was happening. He appeared to be more distraught than normal, deep in thoughts, not at all alert to his surroundings. She wondered if it had something to do with his wife and sons? She had, at a few past special occasions, made Lilian's acquaintance and had always envied her for having such a considerate and caring husband, a luxury she herself had never had the pleasure of experiencing.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3** \- _Quinn Residence - Boston_

Returning from her daily work at the nearby hospital, Michaela was met at the door by her mother, who announced that a letter from Colorado Springs had arrived for her. "Probably a letter telling me they took someone else to fill the position," she said, "it was quite clear during the interview that these gentlemen had more than a few hesitations to add a woman to the exclusively male team," she continued. "You do not know that, Michaela, just open it and see what it has to say," her mother, with a little bit more common sense, answered her. Michaela huffed, "Men... I've had my fair share of rejection, all through high school, medical school and even working at the hospital here in Boston," she could not help but complain. However, she tore open the envelope and started reading. Slowly a smile crept over her face, she looked at her mother, blushing, and with a little jump of joy, she called out, "I got it! They're engaging me! Can you believe it, Mother?"

Although her mother was of course glad for her, at the same time she realised that the moment had come that also her youngest daughter was ready to leave the parental home and spread her wings on her own. Michaela noticed her mother's sadness and threw her arms around her neck. "As soon as I'm settled there, you will come and stay with me, mom, I will take care to find a place big enough to welcome you under my new roof!" Her mother smiled, happy with the way things were falling into place for Michaela. "Certainly my dear, I will be very pleased to come and stay with you. And who knows, you might even find the man of your dreams out there in the West." "Don't count on it too much, mother, I'm afraid a husband would expect all sorts of things from me, demanding that I adapt to his lifestyle, maybe even asking I would give up doctoring... You remember that young man I once dated when I was in high school?" Her mother nodded, she did remember it quite clearly. "Well, already on our first date, he managed to tell me to forget all about doctoring, since he would only consider marrying a woman who was a so-called homemaker... And that was the first and last date with him."

Michaela shuddered at the mere thought of that hallucinating event, many years ago. Her dating experiences so far had been more than a downright disaster, no young man had ever awakened the slightest interest in her, she found them to be superficial, not to say silly, lacking any form of insight in what life could and should be in her perception. It seemed that cars, soccer and baseball were their main fields of interest. None of these appealed in the least to her, so all these dating experiments were abruptly cut off. In the eyes of these young men, she soon became known as a young woman, certainly beautiful, yet unsuitable for any form of dating. She remembered how they always wanted to kiss and cuddle, she found the kissing to be overly disgusting, especially one boy who had wanted to more or less force her into tongue-kissing, an activity at which her stomach had churned, almost to the point of making her throw up...

Pulling herself back to the present, she looked at her mother, saying: "I'd better start packing my suitcases, if I have to start working there at the beginning of next month!" "What do you want to take with you, my dear?" her mother asked, wondering if it would be wise to take all her possessions, instead of just part of it in order to see if the position and the hospital were to her liking. "I'll drive down and I intend to take just a few necessities with me for now, later on, when I'm settled, I can fetch the rest of my belongings or have them delivered to me." "I think that is very wise," her mother responded.

_Colorado Springs_

"Hey Sully!" Daniel called his friend of many years, "have ya seen the announcement on the billboard in the central hall?" "Nope, what's it say?" Sully asked him, only partly interested. "There's a new doctor comin' to join the team, seems she's already startin' in a few days." _"She?"_ Sully enquired, surprise clearly audible in his voice. "Yep, seems to be a lady doc!" Daniel laughed, continuing: "must be some stuffy ol' maid with thick glasses, white socks an' wearin' sandals," he prophesied. Sully laughed out loud, "Nothin' for you ta get excited 'bout then, right?" referring to Daniel's extensive dating record. "Naw, anyway, no highfalutin' lady doctor is gonna spend one second with a maintenance engineer," Daniel humphed. "Yeah, ya're probably right there," Sully admitted. "Is there anythin' we should look at, any equipment needin' our attention?" "Yep, there's a monitor that ain't workin' in the children's ward," Daniel indicated, "let's go there an' see if we can be of any use." And together the two friends headed in the direction of the children's ward.

Byron Sully and Daniel Simon had been friends for as long as they could remember. Aged just three years old, as young a toddler as he was, Byron Sully knew he hated his first name _Byron,_ so he took immediate measures to inculcate the other toddlers in the nursery that he would only respond to them when calling him _Sully_, speaking his first name would not bring any reaction as far as he was concerned. Their respective parents had put them in the same pre-school nursery, from there they moved on to the same kindergarten, elementary school and, after that, high school. They lived in the same street, close to one another and thus had become inseparable. If you saw Daniel, Sully was never far away and vice versa. For generations, Sully's parents and ancestors had been friends with the Cheyenne Indians living on the nearby Reservation, which made that both Sully and Daniel spent most of their holidays with the Cheyenne tribe, learning their language, adapting to their way of life and even wearing the Indian garb, mostly made of buckskin.

They had struggled through high school, neither of them was very talented at nor interested in any specific subject, except computers, which had their undivided attention from a very early age onwards, so it was not surprising at all that they ended up as maintenance engineers for all the advanced computerised equipment at _St Catherine's Hospital_.

Sully's father had suffered a severe, fatal stroke when Sully was a mere toddler and his mother, having lost all interest in life after losing not only her husband, but some years later also her oldest son Will in a car accident, had committed suicide by swallowing a lethal dose of sleeping pills. Sully was just ten years old when he was thus orphaned and, instead of ending up in foster care or an orphanage, the Cheyenne Chief of the nearby Reservation had succeeded, after a fierce legal battle, to obtain custody over the young boy who, from then on, lived with them on the Reservation, under the guidance of Cloud Dancing and his wife Snow Bird. For Sully, the Cheyenne became his family, as the memories of his biological family slowly started to fade away in his mind.

In later years, when he was fourteen, Daniel's mother fell ill and died of an aggressive form of cancer. His father remarried, but Daniel never could get along very well with his stepmother, so he spent most of his time with his friend Sully at the Cheyenne Reservation. This arrangement suited them all, the two boys walked together each morning the fairly long distance to the nearest bus stop of the school bus, and, after school, they walked the same way together again, back to the Reservation.

In all the years they spent on the Reservation, it became clear to Sully that Daniel had a totally different opinion of and approach to girls than he did. Cloud Dancing had, at various occasions, had some serious talks with the two boys on the subject of girls, teens and women, warning them for all sorts of trouble they could get themselves and the girls in if they did not respect the rules of society, especially where the kissing and hugging part was concerned. It was all good and well, he had told them, as long as they would refrain from any sexual relations going so far as to risk getting the girl pregnant. Sully, painfully shy, heeded Cloud Dancing's words religiously, but Daniel, quite a bit bolder and less inhibited than Sully, had been on many dates over the years and had told Sully that being with a woman was one of the most intense moments he had ever experienced. Yet Sully never ventured out on that path, waiting for the one woman Cloud Dancing said would be his _soul mate_. How and when he would meet her, was written in the stars, but his Indian mentor and brother was adamant that Sully would recognise her the moment he met her, and then there would be nothing standing in his way to find out what Daniel had been boasting about.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4** \- _Quinn Residence - Boston_

Carefully going through her possessions, Michaela managed to select no more than what would fit into her car. When she had so brilliantly graduated from medical school, her father had given her a present in the form of a very nice car, German made, not too big yet not too small either, a car in which she could transport even bulky things when needed. Since quite some snow happened to fall in Boston in winter, he had given her a car with a manual gearshift. At first she had balked at the idea of clutch and gears, but it didn't take her long to get accustomed to it. After having lived through a few snowy winters she had to admit that driving under extreme weather conditions, was easier when one could change gears to adapt to the quantity of snow on the road. The fact that the car had a permanent four-wheel drive, vouched for extra safety. With hindsight, she understood her father's good reasoning. Her mother was a great help to get ready and, when the day of departure was there, her mother and sisters, with husbands and children, stood on the pavement to wave her out, all promising to pay her a visit once she would be settled.

It was a long drive to Colorado Springs. Michaela had carefully set out the itinerary, noting which highways to take, and where she would find places to spend the night. She reckoned she would need three or four days to cover the distance of almost two thousand miles. It was at the same time a journey of discovery. She had never been to any of the States she was now crossing, Ohio, Indiana, it was all new to her. The small motels on the roadside were adequate and, after driving so many miles each day, she slept very well, not once disturbed by the noise made by other guests. When planning this trip, she had noticed that right beside her new place of work, _St Catherine's Hospital_, there was a small hotel, called _the Gold Nugget_. It advertised it had its own private, guarded parking, and, more importantly, she saw that it was at walking distance from the hospital, which would make going and coming back from work so much more pleasurable by foot. She had decided to make this little hotel her first port of call.

On her day of departure, she entered the address in the navigation system of her car. To be sure that at the end of her three or four day drive there would be a comfortable bed waiting for her, she had called the hotel to make a reservation. On the other end, she had been greatly amused to hear a man's gruff voice answer her call, as if she were greatly disturbing him. She made the reservation, gave her name and cell phone number, mentioning that she was looking forward to meet him. The man, in turn, had told her his name was Hank Lawson and that he was the owner of the establishment.

_Arrival at The Gold Nugget - Colorado Springs_

Late in the afternoon of Friday, the 29th of April 2005, after driving four days in changing weather conditions, sunny as well as rainy, spending the nights in the relative comfort of the roadside motels, Michaela turned her car into the parking of _the Gold Nugget_. The navigation system had guided her there flawlessly without any further delay and, stepping out of her car, she stretched her arms and legs, heading for the entrance. Hank Lawson was standing behind the counter of his bar, slightly bored at the silence of his establishment. Customers would come in later, by the time they would have had dinner, they would come into the bar, crowding it with groups of friends, mostly playing pool and drinking a beer or whiskey. Many of the patrons were employees working at the nearby hospital.

He observed the young woman entering his hotel and was immediately taken in by her eye-catching appearance. _Wow, that is some lady,_ he remembered later thinking to himself at that moment. She looked at him and greeted him with her usual large smile, "Good afternoon, Sir, my name is Michaela Quinn, I have a reservation for tonight. Are you by any chance Mr Hank Lawson?" Hank cleared his throat before being able to croak: "Yeah, that'll be me, welcome to Colorado Springs and to my hotel. Do you have any luggage, I can help you with?" "Well, no, not yet, I would first like to see the room, if you don't mind?" "Okay," Hank answered and took the key for the room from under the counter. "Please follow me," he said, leading the way up the stairs.

Michaela was pleasantly surprised that the room was at the back of the hotel, so that she would not be disturbed by any traffic noise emanating from the road which ran in front of it. Furthermore, she had a clear view of the parking, where she intended to leave her car. The room was of a decent size and the furniture looked as if it were all handmade, with beautiful carvings. She nodded her approval, moving her hand over some of the carvings, appreciating their beauty. Hank noticed her admiration and smiled: "We have a guy here in Colorado Springs who does these carvings, he is quite the expert. What is it you come to our town for?" he couldn't help but be curious what a sophisticated lady with a foreign car and an accent definitely coming from the East, would have lost in this western town of Colorado. "I'm starting a new job here, at the hospital," she answered. "Ah, you a nurse?" Hank assumed. "No," Michaela said, "I'm a doctor."

Hank was speechless. A lady doctor... "There's only men there who are doctors," he finally managed to say. "Well, that era has now come to an end then," Michaela remarked dryly. Hank chuckled, apart from being a doctor, she also proved to be a quick-witted young lady. Michaela, in turn, took a good look at him. His long, golden locks were clean and well-kept, his eyes were very blue, the only thing Michaela disliked, was his raw voice, maybe he smoked a lot or, even worse, drank a lot... "Could you please help me carry up a few of my bags?" she asked him. "The rest can wait till tomorrow." "Sure, just tell me which ones you want me to carry up for you." She led the way to the parking and, opening her car, she pointed out which suitcases she would need to be brought up to her room. He looked at her car. _Wow, Audi, a German car. Gearshift to top it all,_ he thought. _And in this car she drove all the way from Boston to here, quite a lady..._

In her room, Michaela started unpacking her suitcases. She had booked this room for a few nights only, but she realised she would need a place to stay for longer than just a few nights. After the unpacking, which was done in no time, she went downstairs, intending to speak to the owner, this Mr Lawson, on the subject of prolonging her stay in his establishment. "Mr Lawson..." she started. "Please, call me Hank," he immediately reacted, "Mr Lawson makes me feel like my own grandpa. What d'ya want me to call ya? Dr Quinn or Michaela?" She smiled, "Dr Mike would be best, that's what my patients back in Boston used to call me and besides that, my father always called me Mike." Mentioning her father made her all teary-eyed. Hank noticed her sadness and felt sorry for her. "You're sad," he said, "what happened?" "My father recently passed away," she whispered, wiping her tears. "That why ya come here, ta forget? To get over your sadness?" Hank asked, touched by her grief. Michaela nodded. Composing herself, she remembered what she wanted to talk to him about. "Hank, I would like to know if I can book the room for some more days, until I find an apartment or house to move into, so what would be the price for, let's say, one month?" Hank pondered her question. "I could take you as a resident, price would be $400 a month." "That sounds like a fair deal," she answered, "I take you up on your offer for one month, and if necessary, I'll book for a further month."

Hank was pleased. Having a lady doc and on top of that such a gorgeous woman living in his hotel, would definitely be good for business, since the doctors and, for that matter, any other warm-blooded male in the neighbourhood, were sure to come to his bar when there was such an exquisite lady to be entertained. He had not seen any ring on her finger, so he supposed she was single. Maybe divorced, he pondered, but then no, he didn't think so, for a divorced woman she was too shy, blushing at the blink of an eye and quite awkward around him too. He had seen the way she had looked at him, this was not a woman experienced in being in male company. All these thoughts flew through his mind and he realised that he wouldn't mind taking her out on a date. _Now don't you get ahead of yourself, Hank Lawson, _he scolded himself inwardly,_ a lady of such class will never in your time of life accept to go on a date with a barkeep..._

"Where can I get some breakfast, tomorrow morning?" she asked Hank before retreating to her room. "Oh yes, uhm, there is a small café, just around the corner. Tell Grace I sent you and give her my regards, she's the best cook of all Colorado Springs," Hank informed her. "She opens early, so you should be all right." "Thank you Hank, I'll see you some time tomorrow then," and with those words, Michaela went to her room, intending to make a few urgent phone calls, one of which to her mother, to tell her the trip had gone exceptionally well and that she had safely arrived in a small hotel, called _the Gold Nugget_.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5** \- _Exploring Colorado Springs_

Michaela was supposed to start her assignment in _St Catherine's Hospital_ on Monday, the second of May. That left her a few days to rest and settle down, and, most importantly, to take a look at the town and its surroundings. The next day, after a good night's rest, she descended the stairs and left the hotel. _Grace's Café_ was around the corner, just like Hank had indicated. The owner, Grace, turned out to be a most pleasant African-American woman, with a distinct southern accent. "Good morning, I am Michaela Quinn, Hank sends me over, told me to give you his regards, and that I might be able to get breakfast here?" Michaela introduced herself. Grace smiled at her and decided she liked this new young woman at first sight. "Yeah, no problem, just tell me what you'd like?" Taking Michaela's order, she moved to her kitchen to prepare the meal for her early morning client.

There were not many other clients yet, even though Grace opened very early, the real rush would come by lunchtime, when many employees from the hospital and other nearby firms would flock in for either a sandwich or the day's special. Michaela would soon learn that Grace's meatloaf was famous far beyond the limits of Colorado Springs. At any rate, the breakfast Grace served her, was delicious and, when Michaela said so to Grace, the latter glowed with pride.

"You're new to Colorado Springs, ain't you?" Grace enquired. "Yes, I got myself a job at the hospital," Michaela replied. "And you're staying at Hank's?" Grace said with raised eyebrows, indicating her doubts at the suitability of Hank's establishment. "Yes, is that a problem?" "Well, Hank is not really the best reference on the planet," Grace responded mysteriously. "Is there something wrong with Hank or his hotel?" Michaela was getting curious now. "Hmm, I should maybe not gossip, but it is rumoured that Hank acts as a middleman for... uhm... men seeking a special kind of entertainment..." Grace hesitated to elaborate any further. Michaela caught on immediately, "You mean prostitution?" "Yep," Grace nodded. "Oh dear, well, I guess things like that exist, there's no way to eradicate it, it seems. Anyway, I won't be staying at Hank's for a very long time, I intend to find myself a place to live by myself as soon as possible. For the time being I brought just a few things with me in my car, in fact only the most necessary personal things, but I do have some more pieces of furniture back home which I would like to move over here to put into some future home of my own," Michaela explained. Grace nodded, understanding that settling on her own, was one thing Michaela would have to do soon if she wanted to put some distance between herself and an establishment of doubtful reputation.

Back at the hotel, Michaela spotted Hank doing some cleaning in the bar. "Thank you for telling me about _Grace's Café_, Hank," she said, "I had a delicious breakfast there. Grace is about my age and we had a nice talk." "Yeah, I can imagine," Hank muttered, "she warned ya for me?" "Why would she do that?" "'Cause I'm not always the nicest of guys and some of the business I do, does not sit well with some people. Now if you'll excuse me," he turned around and left her standing there, lost in her own thoughts.

That day as well as the following ones, including the week-end, Michaela took time to explore the town and its surroundings. She walked for many hours, inhaling the fresh, crisp mountain air. In the far distance, she admired the view of the mountains. Yes, she felt she had taken the right decision to leave Boston behind her and start a new life here in Colorado Springs. She looked forward to begin her work in the hospital. She had walked from the hotel to the hospital to evaluate the distance and concluded that the information which she had found on the internet, was indeed correct. From the _Gold Nugget_ to the hospital was not too far to go on foot. This meant she could leave her car neatly parked in Hank's yard, one worry less, she thought.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6** \- _St Catherine's Hospital - Colorado Springs_

In the Central Hall, the billboard with the announcement of the engagement of a new doctor had been widely read by most of the staff, and many people had flocked together in the spacious Central Hall, eagerly awaiting the new doctor. Dr Clifford, in his function of Head of the Medical Team, had asked some of his team to join him near the announcement board to welcome the new doctor, who was supposed to report for duty by nine in the morning. He had requested Charlotte Cooper, the Head-Nurse, to come with some of her team as well.

Daniel and Sully, having heard that the new doctor was going to get a warm welcome in the Central Hall, equally took care to be there for the great event, both very curious to see what a lady doctor coming from the East would look like. It was not every day that a new doctor was engaged and, to make things even more interesting, a female doctor.

Shortly before nine, two groups had formed in the Central Hall. One with Dr Clifford and his team, and one with Charlotte and some of her nurses. Daniel and Sully were standing somewhere in the back, a bit hidden from the others, intent at watching the events unfolding in front of their eyes.

At exactly nine o'clock, the automatic entrance doors opened and Dr Michaela Quinn MD stepped inside. Sully couldn't believe his eyes, was this lady a doctor? He nudged Daniel, "Hey, what did you say? Stuffy old maid with thick glasses an' white socks on sandals?" Daniel was awed. It had to be said that Michaela, with her back turned to the morning sun shining into the Hall, was an unusual, not to say splendid, vision. Her auburn hair was reflecting the sunlight, she walked, no, she seemed to float on air on her high heels, dressed in an expensive two-piece suit. Her smiling complexion rendered them speechless, all eyes were rivetted on her.

Mortimer Clifford could hardly believe his eyes, she was even more beautiful now than how he remembered her when she had come in for her personal interview. As if someone had hit him on the head, he realised that he was head over heels in love with this young doctor. However, again his strict upbringing and strong religious beliefs refused to admit this. So he decided to ignore his feelings and force himself to build up a normal working relationship with this stunning woman, the object of his infatuation.

The murmur in the Central Hall faded away while both teams watched how Michaela approached them, heading straight for the group with the medical team, where she had spotted Dr Clifford. Assuming him to be the person in charge of welcoming her, she walked over to him with outstretched hand. He, in turn, moved to meet her, taking her hand, speaking a few words of welcome. They were surprised to hear her answer in a strong voice, loud and clear, they had all more or less expected that she would be so impressed by all the people gathered there, that she would be soft-spoken, even shy. But none of this occurred, she spoke up and addressed both groups, not aware of the presence of the two maintenance engineers, Daniel and Sully, who remained somewhat hidden in the back, near the elevators.

"Dr Clifford! How nice to see you again and, before I forget it, thank you for offering me the job, I am really looking forward to join your team!" "Well, it was not so much my decision, as well as that of the Board of Directors," Mortimer said earnestly, not wanting to take undue credit, continuing: "Dr Quinn, as you can see, both the medical team and the team of nurses are here to welcome you. Please allow me to introduce you."

And, turning to the attendees, he stated in a loud voice: "Many of you here present have read the recent announcement on the billboard, so you already know that the name of our new colleague is Dr Michaela Quinn, MD, from Boston. Thank you for being here, but now I would suggest that you all go back to your various occupations and I will make a tour of the hospital with Dr Quinn for a more personal meeting with each of you."

The gathering dissolved, still awed at the sight of this new young doctor. Each regained their respective wards and offices to start the day, awaiting the visit of Dr Clifford and the new doctor, Dr Quinn.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7** \- _Introductory tour of St Catherine's Hospital - Colorado Springs_

In the Central Hall, the two maintenance engineers, Daniel and Sully, had not moved from their spot near the elevators, speechless at the appearance this new lady doctor had made. Dr Clifford looked around and, noticing the two engineers, he addressed Michaela: "I see that our two maintenance engineers are still here, let me introduce you to them personally first, so that we may continue later on with the teams of doctors and nurses." With those words, he took her by the arm and led her to where Daniel and Sully were still rooted to the ground, both at a loss for words when they realised how wrong Daniel had been in predicting what this new lady doctor was going to look like, according to him...

While she approached them, led on by Dr Clifford, Sully's eyes locked with Michaela's. At that same moment, Sully felt as if a bolt of lightning had struck him, he looked at Michaela and was greatly surprised by a feeling that he... recognised her. His mind started working overtime, how could he recognise her?! He was positive that this was the first time he ever laid eyes on her, there was definitely something going on here that was completely new to him and, what was more, totally out of his control. These strange sensations frightened him, threw him off-balance, even though he knew, from the many years of living with the Cheyenne Indians, that there were sometimes inexplicable things happening to people, things which were the realm of the Spirits who intervened in making certain events occur.

Michaela, in turn, locked eyes with the smaller of the two maintenance engineers. She noticed how breathtakingly handsome he was, with his long, honey-coloured hair, tanned skin and eyes as bright and blue as a cloudless summer sky. Seconds later, their eyes still locked, another sensation washed over her, one of... recognition? Stunned at this feeling, her rational mind started immediately fighting such a weird occurrence, she was puzzled and, in the same way that Sully had been, she was thrown off-balance, being very sure that she was meeting this young man for the first time in her life. So she concluded that, at this same moment, what she felt, must have been something irrational, to be discarded without any further thought.

Pulling herself back from her musings, she heard Dr Clifford say: "Gentlemen, may I present you, Dr Michaela Quinn. As you know, she will join the team of doctors starting tomorrow. Today is dedicated to getting acquainted with the layout of the hospital and meeting many members of our staff. Dr Quinn, please meet Daniel Simon and Byron Sully, our two computer specialists who will assist you if any of the complex devices and equipment in our hospital would fail to function properly."

Sully cringed at hearing his first name, this had to be corrected on the spot, least he'd be called _Byron_ once too often for his liking. He was still under shock from the strange sensations this young lady doctor had awakened in him and was glad that Daniel was there to save him from making a complete fool of himself. Daniel offered Michaela his hand, "Pleased to meet you, Dr Quinn, welcome to our hospital." She gave him her usual warm smile and Daniel couldn't help but feel not just flattered, but sincerely attracted to her. "Pleased to meet you too, Mr Simon," she said. "Oh no please, just call me Daniel," he hastened to say, "Mr Simon makes me feel old!" She laughed and let go of his hand. "Okay, Daniel it will be, please call me Dr Mike then, that's what my patients in Boston always used to call me." She held out her hand to the second maintenance engineer, the one called Byron Sully.

When their hands touched, the electricity surge caught them fully off-guard, and they almost withdrew, scared at what they were experiencing. Fleetingly, Sully thought that maybe this was just static electricity, sometimes that happens when different fabrics come into contact with one another... Michaela wondered what else was going to happen to her in the presence of this gorgeous young man, who apparently had such a great effect on her, making her feel these hitherto unknown sensations. With as much self-control as she could muster, she managed to say: "Pleased to meet you, Mr Sully."

While her eyes were still locked with his, she was also aware of the heat emanating from his hand which continued to firmly hold hers. Both realised at the same instant that their interaction was highly unusual, so they let go of their hands, forcing themselves to get back to the present moment and to put all those strange sensations that seemed to occur when they came close to one another, to the back of their minds. "It's just _Sully_," he managed to murmur, feeling like a stammering fool, "please drop the _Mister_ bit." "I see," Michaela responded softly, feeling almost dizzy at the sound of his voice, that deep baritone, so melodious, she instantly knew she could listen to it for hours, "Sully. Well, then I'm just Dr Mike for you too, of course."

Dr Clifford and Daniel had watched the weird exchange between these two young people. On the one hand, there was Daniel, who, knowing Sully almost as well as he knew himself, had no doubt that something very special was occurring between his friend and the new lady doc. He wondered if he was witnessing the start of a relationship? And would such a relationship be a happy one? Or would it be interspersed with lots of obstacles, since this young woman came from a totally different world than his friend? He could only hope for the best, he thought to himself.

On the other hand, Dr Clifford had also noticed the strange interlude between this new doctor and the maintenance engineer, a pang of jealousy sliced through him. Whatever was happening here, it did not augur a lot of good for his own feelings, which, as far as he was concerned, were to be dismissed to the farthest corner of his mind, since they were totally out of line. Putting an end to the awkward situation, he proposed to continue their round of the hospital. Michaela, relieved to escape the tension she had felt in the proximity of this mysterious young man going by just _Sully_, and who provoked such uncomfortable reactions in her, was more than happy to follow her new boss, Dr Clifford.

Being introduced to the medical team was very pleasant. Michaela, who had always enjoyed exchanging details on specific cases and treatments of patients with her colleagues, was quite surprised to notice that they were less prejudiced towards a lady doctor than what she had experienced during her years of practising in Boston. She was faintly aware of the admiring glances with which some of the young doctors graced her, and she hoped that she would soon be able to establish the same reputation for herself as the one she had succeeded to make in Boston, namely one of being _un-dateable_...

She could not help but remember her few dates, one more disastrous than the other. At the same time the strange sensations she had felt when meeting the enigmatic Sully, flooded back to her mind. What was going on with her? Why did this young engineer make her feel so strange? He was handsome, to say the least, but was that a reason for her to get all flustered and feel funny? Better to push all thought of him to the back of her mind, she decided, focussing her attention on Dr Clifford and the people she was supposed to meet today.

Her introduction to the team of nurses proved to be a highlight, since the head of this team was a middle-aged nurse by the name of Charlotte Cooper, with whom Michaela instantly felt a deeper connection, reciprocated by the older woman, leading to glances of understanding being exchanged, without the need for words. Michaela had an inkling that Charlotte might well become one of her closest friends, here in her new hometown.

Michaela particularly liked to be shown the children's ward. In Boston, her specialisation in paediatrics had often resulted in her being asked to take care of sick children and she had discovered how very rewarding the interaction with children had been for her. Although too often to her liking, she had been unable to avoid very sick children to pass, there were also many who she had saved, often against all odds, which was more than she could hope for. She trusted that here in Colorado Springs, she would be able to continue to do the same.


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8** \- _Getting settled - Colorado Springs_

After the refreshing walk from the hospital back to the _Gold Nugget_, Michaela sighed happily that this first day had gone by so pleasantly. Entering the hotel, Hank was there and greeted her with a wide grin. It was obvious that he liked her, liked her even a lot, he had to admit to himself. "So how was your day?" he asked, curious what this new lady doctor had been up to the entire day. "It was perfect," Michaela gushed, "I was welcomed by many colleagues in the Central Hall and after the first introductions, I was taken on a tour of the hospital, meeting more colleagues and being shown the various wards, operating rooms, the ICU and the ER."

She wasn't sure if Hank understood these abbreviations, but then, she thought, he would certainly ask if he needed some further explanation. "Whom did you meet?" Hank enquired, "I know quite a few of them guys from the hospital, they often come here in the evenin' to have a drink or a game of pool. Did you meet Daniel an' Sully?" he asked, knowing that these two would have caught her attention since neither one of them had anything remotely to do with the medical care for patients. "Yes, as a matter of fact I did," she replied, wondering why Hank would speak of these young engineers and no one else. Hank chuckled, well aware of her bewilderment. "Sully is the one did the carvings on the furniture in your room," he informed her with a grin. "He did?! Apart from being a computer specialist, he is also a... uhm... carpenter?" she was more than surprised to learn of the skills of this Sully, undeniably a very talented young man.

"Yep," Hank continued, "Sully is quite a character. Doesn't say much, but he's very reliable, a man of his word, you should see the work he did to renovate his house, an old log cabin he inherited from one of his aunts, a real miracle, came out real nice." "Well, his wife or girlfriend will be very pleased then," Michaela wouldn't for anything in the world miss the chance to learn something more about this enigmatic character who had made her feel so funny. Hank laughed out loud. "Sully and a girl?! Never ever! If you ask me, he's dead scared of women. Tried to hook him up once with one of the many nice girls I know, but boy, did he give me hell to keep out of his life! Never tried it again, but you'll agree with me, he's darn good looking. I remember in school all the girls were smitten with him. Mind you, he even didn't notice it. Went on a few dates, but the little I heard 'bout 'em, it never worked out. He just is too darn shy, I think. Needs a special kind of woman to wake him up, if you ask me."

Hank kept on laughing at the oddity of a handsome guy not knowing the effect he had on females swooning over him. Michaela smiled, so her first impression that this Sully was a strange young man, had been the right one. Yet she herself was strange as well, she could hardly forget how they had both been thrown off-balance when they first met, the feeling of recognition still played through her mind as well as the strange electricity when they shook hands, the heat she felt coming from his hand, it all was too troubling for her...

For her evening meal, Michaela decided to pay another visit to Grace's, the breakfast had been delicious, it was to be expected that dinner would be quite as good. Had not Hank told her that Grace was the best cook in all Colorado Springs? In her room, she changed into some less formal clothes, jeans and a top, and soon she was on her way to Grace's. The restaurant was quite full, she looked around to see if there was a small table for just one person, but there was none.

All of a sudden, she heard her name. "Dr Mike! Over here!" Daniel called out. He was with Sully, of all people, she mused. As she approached their table, Michaela felt her stomach do somersaults and, looking at Sully, she noticed that he was just as uncomfortable as she was. Yet she wanted to have something to eat, so she scolded herself for having such silly reactions to this young man, and sat down with them. They had not yet ordered, so Michaela picked up the menu and tried to choose from the many items on it.

When Grace came to their table, she smiled her big, warm, southern smile and commented: "Hey, glad to see you already made some friends back at the hospital." "There is no free table for just one person," Michaela defended her choice of sitting down with the two engineers. "No need to explain," Grace laughed, "you picked the right guys, Daniel and Sully are real gentlemen." "Stop it, Grace," Daniel warned her jokingly. Michaela noticed that Sully remained silent, his head bowed, gazing at the placemat in front of him. It confirmed what she had heard about him so far, painfully shy... In a certain way, she felt sorry for him, but she had no idea how she could be of any help chasing his inner demons.

"Well, what shall it be?" Grace asked, ready to take their order. Sully looked up, "I'll have the meatloaf," he muttered. "Me too," Michaela quickly said, glad she didn't have to choose. Sully looked at her. God, she was beautiful, the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. He felt totally lost, she had an effect on him that he hated, it made him feel stupid, not able to participate in any sensible discussion. He took his eyes off her and looked down at the placemat again.

Daniel, remembering Sully's reaction when meeting this young doctor, felt sorry for his friend's discomfort and decided to have a serious talk with him on the subject of how to behave when in the company of others, especially women, and in particular this stunningly beautiful Dr Mike... Not that he thought it would be of much use, but one could never know, maybe he could help Sully get over his inhibitions and finally communicate on a different level with others.

Grace brought the food and Michaela had to admit that this was the best meatloaf she had ever had. Sully and Daniel also appreciated their meal and Daniel did his best to maintain a pleasant conversation. Michaela stood her ground, her general knowledge was so vast, that Daniel could have chosen any topic and she would have been able to comment on it. Sully only reacted with either _yes_ or _no_, according to the subject being dealt with. More than that, he did not offer. He was, however, awed at Michaela's apparent knowledge of so many things and the way in which she explained her points of view. Some of these were not at all to Sully's liking, but he failed to react properly, feeling he would again cover himself with ridicule, being reduced to a stammering fool by the simple proximity of this gorgeous woman.

To make things worse, he was feeling urges that he had never had before. Never had he felt the impulse to take a woman in his arms, to hug her, to cuddle her, but with her, he could not deny that he would love to hold her, even kiss her and, why not, make love to her. He quickly looked down, feeling that he was even blushing at the mere thought of being intimate with this delicious young woman. Vaguely he remembered Daniel saying that a lady doctor from Boston, a member of one of Boston's most wealthy families, would never stoop to paying any attention to a mere maintenance engineer. Admitting the logic and truthfulness of Daniel's remark, he calmed down and decided that, from now on, he would try and keep his distance from her.


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9** \- _Day-to-day life in Colorado Springs_

On Tuesday, the 3rd of May 2005, Dr Michaela Quinn officially entered employment at _St Catherine's Hospital_. She was more than pleased to be able to work - most of the time - in the children's ward. Her little patients immediately took a liking to her and in the evening, she retreated to her room in _the_ _Gold Nugget_ with a sense of happiness and fulfilment she had not felt in months. The memories of her father were slowly moving to the background of her mind and she was able to focus on things and events around her.

As she had foreseen, Charlotte Cooper proved to be a precious friend. The two women had immediately bonded with each other and Michaela enjoyed the lunches and dinners they had together. Charlotte had even invited Michaela on various occasions to her house, where she had met Charlotte's three children: Matthew, the oldest, Colleen, the middle child and the youngest, Brian. All three had instantly closed Michaela in their hearts and the conversations they had, were animated and interesting. Colleen adored this new friend of her mother and silently decided she was going to be a doctor as well. Without talking much about it, she had looked up on the internet what one needed to become a doctor and, with her excellent results in school, she had decided to make that her goal.

At work, Michaela was a bit disappointed that, each time she needed assistance with any of the complex equipment, it was Daniel who rushed to her side to help her out. One day, about a week later, she just couldn't stand it any longer and, when he entered the room where she was having a problem with one of the devices, she gathered all her courage and asked Daniel why Sully would never come when she needed help? Daniel looked at her, and smiled, knowing that this was his chance to try and help to put some things on the right track. "Sully is very shy. He told me that in your presence, he feels he turns into a stammering fool. Since he doesn't like to be a stammering fool, he said he would appreciate it if I were to come and help you out each time you had a problem."

Michaela was not amused at all. It took some time before she had her answer ready. Daniel, trusting his explanation had indeed closed the subject, was surprised when he finally heard her say: "Well, then tell him that I also feel completely off-balance when he is near me, that makes two of us, so I'm highly intrigued to find out what this means." Daniel, with his experience of dating quite some girls and young women in his life so far, knew he had to help these two get along with each other, because undeniably there was something they both felt but were too scared and inexperienced to communicate these feelings to each other. "I'll tell him as soon as I see him again. Maybe I'll go play a game of pool with him tonight, over at Hank's, you could come too, if you want, it might help you getting to know each other. I'm sure you will find out how to deal with the awkwardness you're both feeling. I think you just have to have a good talk and tell what exactly those feelings are." "That might be an idea," she answered, without promising anything, blushing at the idea but quite happy to do something to get to the bottom of this riddle.

Daniel knew he had to do some convincing. As soon as he entered their mutual office, he addressed Sully and proposed to go and play pool at Hank's that same evening, after they would have finished their work. Sully, well aware that Michaela had a room at _the Gold Nugget,_ since she had not yet found a suitable place to live, looked at his friend, ready to refuse his proposition. Daniel, intent on a refusal, didn't give Sully time to answer but instead he said: "I told her that you feel like a stammering fool when you're near her. You know what she said?"

Sully was getting angry at Daniel for disclosing something so private and personal about him, but his curiosity, piqued to know more about Michaela's reaction, got the better of him and he prompted his friend: "Nope, what's she say?" "That she was just as uncomfortable as you when she's near you. So you see, if you ask me, the two of you should have a good talk and tell each other exactly what you felt when you met and how you feel now, and try to sort out where these feelings come from, it might eventually be leading up to something," Daniel concluded, hoping Sully would see the practical side of his proposition. "Can't lead anywhere," Sully muttered, "lady like her would never even look at the likes of me." "You'll never know before you've tried," Daniel closed the subject.


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10** \- _Taking the plunge - Colorado Springs_

Once their work in the hospital finished, the two friends, without any further discussion, went to Hank's where they had a sandwich and started to play pool. Michaela, in her room on the first floor, was torn between going down or staying in her room. Finally, her desire to know more about those strange feelings between herself and the maintenance engineer, Sully, got the better of her and she descended the stairs, dressed casually in jeans and a simple top. In the pool room, Sully and Daniel were engaged in a fierce battle with some other men, Sully on the winning hand, since he was an excellent pool player.

Michaela remained standing in the doorway, observing the men play, again noticing how stunningly handsome Sully looked, surprised that no woman so far had succeeded in claiming his permanent attention. Looking up, their eyes locked and all the familiar sensations started once more to assail them, making them feel more than uncomfortable, both wishing the earth would swallow them up there and then...

Daniel, noticing what was going on, walked over to Sully, and, standing very close to him, he softly urged him on: "Okay, now get out to her, ask her for a walk, for a coffee, or whatever, but see to it that you're alone with her some place and talk with her. Let her know how you feel, she will certainly tell you how she feels, go on, Sully, don't make me push you any further."

With a sigh, Sully reluctantly put down his billiard cue, knowing he would not get away with a refusal to face his demons. He slowly walked over to Michaela. Blushing heavily, he looked at her and asked: "Uhm... good evening, Dr Mike, would you... uhm... would you care to take a walk with me?" Michaela, by now blushing crimson as well, just managed to utter: "Good evening Sully, yes, I would like that very much, let me just get my coat from my room." And with those words, she sped up the stairs to pick up her warm coat, since the evening air was still rather chilly.

Daniel had watched them and was pleased that his friend had indeed had the courage to ask this beautiful young woman for a walk. He was convinced that these two had some sort of connection, he had seen it when they had met, they just needed a little push in the right direction to get them to realise it. In the meantime Sully had also put on his own coat and, once Michaela had come down again, they left the establishment together, walking towards a nearby park, where Sully knew they would find the privacy they needed for their talk.

In the park, there were only few people, which suited them perfectly well. Not knowing where to start, Sully pointed to a bench where they could sit down to have the talk they both feared but which they also longed for. Michaela, slightly less shy than Sully, decided to take the lead. "Sully, I have the impression that you are avoiding me, so I asked Daniel this afternoon if this was true and also why you would do this? He told me that you feel uncomfortable in my presence. Is this true? Have I done something to upset you? If I did, then I'm awfully sorry, making people feel uncomfortable is never my intention."

Sully looked at her and smiled. He knew the moment had come to tell her what he felt, no need to beat around the bush any longer. "No, you've done nothing wrong, but it's true, I feel like a stammering fool whenever I'm near you. Things are happening to me that have never happened to me before, maybe by talking to you about it now, we can figure out what's happening to us, 'cause Daniel told me you feel just as uncomfortable as I do." Michaela chuckled. "That's true. Do you remember when we first met?" she asked him. "Yeah, as if it were yesterday," Sully admitted, continuing: "I was completely thrown off-balance, because... I know this sounds crazy, but I want to be honest with you and tell you exactly how it felt. It was as if... as if... I recognised you, as if I had known you before. I know it can't be, I know we met for the first time at the hospital, but that's how it felt to me. And when you shook my hand, it was as if I was struck by lightning."

After this uncharacteristically long speech, Sully fell silent, fearing that she would get up and tell him to get lost with his tale of strange feelings. Anxiously he looked at her, waiting for her reaction to his words. Michaela was surprised that he had felt the same sensations and emotions as she had, so she took his hand, and again, the same electrical discharge shook them both. She looked at him and softly whispered: "I feel exactly the same, Sully. When I first saw you, it was as if I recognised you too, but my mind was screaming to stop it, that it couldn't be, that I was imagining things. But I know I wasn't, just now, when I took your hand, I felt that funny electrical tingling again." "So did I," he murmured. "Do you think this might be what they call _love at first sight?_" Michaela asked him softly. "Don't know, but I know I've never felt like this. If this is love at first sight, what're we gonna do 'bout it? I mean, you come from such a different world than where I come from, how would you ever consider dating me if I asked you?"

Michaela pondered his words. Thinking of her mother's remark about finding a suitable husband in her new hometown, she knew presenting Sully to her family and especially her mother, would wreak havoc in the family. As a suitable husband for her youngest daughter, her mother would never settle for less than another doctor or, for that matter, someone with a high-ranking university degree or a top-job...

Sully was nervous, his heart was pounding in his chest, he very much feared that she would think him completely crazy to ever imagine that she would accept to go out with him. Michaela, in turn, felt that the attraction he exerted on her was very strong, she instinctively knew that she would love to be close to him, to get to know him better... Michaela looked at him and, noticing his anxiety, had only one wish, to take that anxiety away, to comfort him that the difference in upbringing, educational level and family wealth, never would be an obstacle for her to follow her heart.

She gave his hand a tender squeeze and softly whispered: "I would definitely consider dating you, Sully, I would always follow my heart, but I have to warn you, I do not know how to go about this, my experience with boys or young men has always been disastrous, so I do not know what you expect of me, I might not be able to live up to your expectations."

Sully chuckled, relieved that his confession had not shied her away. He felt he always wanted to be close to her. Even if she would have told him that he was crazy and, putting an end to their conversation, would have asked him to please walk her home, he would oblige, but he would never let her out of his sight anymore. "Don't you worry, I'm just as inexperienced as you are, Dr Mike, we will have to figure this out together. I've been on a few dates, but nothing real serious ever came of it, with none of those girls I've ever felt like I feel with you, even though I know that they'd have been willing to go out on more dates with me, I never wanted to let that happen. So, where do we go from here?" he wondered. "Well, for starters, I think you might begin by calling me _Michaela_, and not _Dr Mike,_" she suggested. "Fair enough, _Michaela_ it will be," he said gently, looking at her and blushing at the possibility that she accepted to go out with him, as they called it, of _dating_ her.

He almost choked at the intensity of the attraction between them, he would love to kiss her right there, but he was afraid she would find him too forward or too bold, that she would shy away from him. She noticed his hesitation, wondering if he wanted to kiss her as much as she would love to kiss him, to cover his lips with hers... She approached her head to his, and made their lips meet. It was indescribable. They lost all notion of their surroundings, what was happening here, was something so new that it almost scared them. They both felt how their hearts were racing, it was as if their bodies had caught fire, and, in that first kiss, lay all the promise of their future together. They both felt it and, when their lips parted, Michaela could only murmur: "More, please, kiss me again Sully..."

He immediately responded, but this time he couldn't refrain from deepening the kiss, urging her to open up to him, to let their tongues dance together, making them forget the rest of the world. Michaela, remembering her disgust at the boy who, many years ago, had tried to kiss her in this way, was more than surprised that there was no disgust here, that she wanted nothing more than to fully respond to Sully, opening her mouth to him, letting their tongues meet, feeling completely overwhelmed by the strange sensations engulfing her. Her stomach was full of butterflies, but she all of a sudden noticed a far more surprising reaction right down in her centre, a pulsing and throbbing had started there, reminding her of the few times she would wake up at night, experiencing what she knew to be a female orgasm.

Sully, in turn, was more aroused than he had ever been. His jeans were far too tight for his erection and he felt more than uncomfortable. He feared that Michaela would notice what was happening to him, but then again, he thought to himself, she was a doctor, and didn't doctors know all there was to know about the human body and its functioning? That thought calmed him somewhat of his fear of being caught in such a rigid state. From afar, Cloud Dancing's words echoed in his mind: _you will know when you meet your soul mate..._ Yes, now he knew, it really was his soul mate who was sitting right beside him, whom he was holding in a tight embrace, even kissing... He had no doubt that she would prove to be the love of his life. Thinking of the road ahead of them, he couldn't suppress his anxiety at what lay ahead of them. It might not be as easy as it seemed. He had no doubt that dating Michaela was going to be a wonderful experience, but he also realised that many obstacles would have to be overcome. First thing to do now, he pondered, was to get to know each other a lot better, to see if a long-lasting relationship could be build up between them. In a far-away future, he hoped their dating would lead to an engagement and, if it all worked out, even a wedding...?

Michaela was lost in her own world. With her inquisitive mind, she was quietly analysing what was happening to her. She was surprised at herself when she realised that soon, she would no longer want to stop at just kissing. Her body longed for his touch, everywhere, she imagined what it would be like to be skin-to-skin with him, to physically join her own body to his... It even more surprised her, because until then, the thought of intimacy with a man had always seemed abhorrent to her, now, to experience this kind of intimacy with Sully, was the one thing she longed for more than anything else. She marvelled at her sudden change of heart on the matter of intimacy. So this was love, she thought to herself, the one feeling she had never yet experiences, but now it was there. And this gorgeous, handsome man sitting beside her, holding her in his arms, was the one who had caused her to wake up to these strange sensations, making her long for more...

"So you think we've fallen in love?" she asked Sully, looking and getting lost in his shining blue eyes. "Yep, looks like it," he responded dryly, chuckling at the weird way in which they had found to each other, but at the same time smiling his bright blue smile at her. "Aren't we supposed to say _I love you_ to each other?" she continued, remembering how these things normally developed. "And what are we going to tell the others?" Michaela was getting nervous at the prospect of letting her newly discovered world know what had happened to her.

For some time, Sully remained silent. Finally he looked up at her and slowly said, carefully pondering each word: "Michaela Quinn, I love you. I have loved you from the very first time I saw you, back in the Central Hall of the hospital. It just took me some time to realise that what I felt for you, was a deep, strong love. I want to protect you from any harm that could ever be done to you, I want to be at your side, living my life with you. There is one more thing you need to know about me. For all these years, I've felt lonely. As if there never would be anybody who could take those feelings of loneliness away from me. But now, after confessing my feelings to you and knowing that you too have feelings for me, this loneliness is no longer there. I feel complete, safe with you by my side. I hope we will be able to build a relationship of love and trust in each other. Whatever the future is going to be, I will always be there for you, come what may."

Michaela was extremely moved by his declaration of love. "Sully, I feel the same. What you say about feeling lonely, I have also felt like that for many years. But it is true, with you I also feel safe and no longer so alone. I will do all I can to make our relationship a happy one, but you have to promise me one thing..." "And that is?" he asked. "That you'll never ask me to give up doctoring," she responded. He looked at her and smiled. "I would never ask that of you, you're a natural talent at doctoring and, if you're born with a natural talent, you should live it to its fullest extent, otherwise you'd be cheating yourself out of what mother nature has gifted you with."

To seal their mutual promise, they kissed again, and if Sully wouldn't have gotten most uncomfortable again, they would have continued kissing well into the night. But as it was, he felt he was getting more and more turned on and he knew that if he did not stop this kissing soon, he was going to lose control, probably making a fool of himself in Michaela's eyes. His male pride was unwilling to take that risk. Making a mess of himself was not one of his habits, so, breaking the kiss, he hoarsely uttered that they should return to their respective homes.

Michaela agreed, she too was feeling more and more out of control, yet she knew that a few details remained to be discussed. "Do we keep our new-found relationship quiet, or do we tell Daniel and our colleagues in the hospital that we are dating?" she wondered. "What do you want?" he asked her. "I don't know," she said, "I have no experience whatsoever with this kind of situation." "Me neither," he admitted, "but I think we owe Daniel a thank you, since he pushed me to make this happen." "Just Daniel then," she agreed, "let's not inform everybody in the hospital before we are sure that this is something we both want and can make work." After a few more chaste hugs and cuddles, they stood up and headed towards _the Gold Nugget_.

The moment they stepped inside the hotel, Daniel saw that his idea of a serious, private talk between the two of them had been the right thing to push his friend into doing. He clearly saw peace of mind reflected on Sully's face. Come to that, they both looked positively at ease, Michaela was radiant, whereas Sully's face was glowing with a quiet and happy shine. They walked over to Daniel and sat down with him. "So, did you two have a good talk?" Daniel asked, already knowing the answer. "Yeah, we did," Sully chuckled, slightly blushing, "the outcome was more than amazing." Michaela just nodded, but the way they looked at each other, spoke volumes. Daniel knew enough. His friend had found his soul mate, just like Cloud Dancing had predicted so many years ago, when they had lived on the Reservation. "I guess you no longer want me to help Dr Mike when some of the equipment in her department is not working properly?" Daniel couldn't help but tease his friend. Sully and Michaela looked at each other, having trouble to keep from laughing out loud, but both were looking forward to such an event.


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11** \- _Working at making it work - Colorado Springs _

Days became weeks and weeks became months. Sully and Michaela revelled in their love, the time spent together was precious to them, they got to know each other better and better, which made them look forward with confidence to a future together. They frequently went for long walks, there were some magnificent parks in Colorado Springs where they enjoyed walking hand in hand, stealing kisses and telling each other what had happened in their lives. Michaela loved to listen when Sully told her things from his younger years, not always very joyful things, but it all helped her to understand him better. To her great surprise, Sully told her that one of his hobbies was reading poetry. Many a time, when they were out walking in one of the parks, he would have a poetry book with him and, sitting in the shade of some huge tree, he would read to her. She was bewitched by his voice, it was a deep baritone, it echoed deep within her soul, she would recognise his voice anywhere, she thought...

Sully had also had long talks with Cloud Dancing. When Michaela was on the late shift in the hospital, he drove out to the Reservation and visited his friend and his wife, Snow Bird. They were happy that Sully had apparently found what they hoped would prove to be his _soul mate_, and they urged him to bring her with him whenever he would visit them again. Especially Snow Bird was looking forward to meet Michaela, having known Sully from such an early age onwards, she was sure she could be very helpful in making this relationship a success.

The staff in the hospital had been very surprised that the new young doctor was swept off her feet by the enigmatic maintenance engineer, many a nurse felt a pang of jealousy at Michaela's luck to have conquered the heart of this handsome young man. It was inevitable that rumours started to circulate that Sully was mainly interested in Michaela for her fortune, even though no one really knew what that fortune consisted of, the mere fact that she came from one of the wealthiest families in Boston, was enough to have them suppose that she only worked because she liked doctoring, not out of necessity. Charlotte Cooper did a great job contradicting these rumours by simply pointing out that you just needed to observe how these two looked at each other, to know that they were together not because of money, but because they were deep in love with each other, as deep as seldom any two human beings had been.

The news of Dr Quinn and Sully being together, had come as a shock to Dr Mortimer Clifford. As a matter of fact, working with Michaela had only strengthened his feelings for her. Yet he knew that nothing could ever come of it, his sons were still too young to be confronted with what would surely be a messy divorce and, for Lilian, he was certain it would come as a clap of thunder in a clear sky if he were to announce his desire to divorce her. So he just kept his admiration for Michaela hidden deep inside himself, but that did not change anything to the fact that he felt a fierce jealousy towards Sully.

One day, when Michaela was in Dr Clifford's office for a discussion on a particularly problematic patient, he had asked her if it were true that she was dating Sully? Surprised that her boss would be interested in her private life and at the same time resenting his curiosity, she had simply stated: "Yes, Sully and I are more than just good friends, we're dating and we're very happy together." When he insisted that Sully was not really a suitable candidate for her to date, Michaela had cut him off, telling him resolutely that her private life was none of his business. "I do think it is," he had responded, "since you are part of the medical team here, the well-being of all employees is one of my concerns."

Michaela, quick-witted as usual, did not mince her words and had sharply put him into place, saying: "Dr Clifford, I would appreciate it if you would refrain from giving any thought to or meddling in my private life, and I warn you that I will refuse to listen to any comments on that subject, so it is no use for you to try and tell me whom I should or should not be dating. Your opinion does not interest me in the least. Our working relationship has been a very pleasant one so far, and I would hate to see that change because of my relationship with Sully, which pertains, I may remind you, to my private life. If you will excuse me, I have to return to my patients." And with those words, she had turned on her heels, leaving him standing there, alone with his thoughts, and with a deep sigh of regret, he had returned to his many tasks and occupations.

Michaela decided not to tell Sully about Dr Clifford's infatuation with her. She was furious at the nerve of this man and she knew her working relationship with him would suffer. Furthermore, Michaela and Sully were aware of the rumours which were circulating on the subject of their dating, and they had discussed whether it would be wise to react to them or not. They decided that no reaction seemed to be their best option, after all, they were happy and the reason why they were so happy, was their own private business. The one spectre looming over them, Michaela knew, was her family. She had confided in her elder sister Rebecca that she had met the love of her life, and Rebecca had congratulated her, wanting to know all about Sully and how their relationship had come about? Michaela had told her many things about Sully, Rebecca recognised a lot from what she felt for her own husband, Richard. "Did you speak to mother yet, Michaela?" Rebecca had asked her youngest and favourite sister. "No, not yet," Michaela had answered, "I'm really a bit scared to tell mother."

She had, during some phone calls with her mother, sideways hinted that she was going out from time to time with a colleague from the hospital, but she had refrained from giving any further details. She was convinced her mother assumed she was dating one of the other young doctors, and Michaela hesitated to set that straight. She was honestly at a loss how to tackle the problem called Elizabeth Quinn, her overbearing mother. Rebecca insisted that Michaela should remediate soonest, reminding her that, if this relationship with Sully really worked out and became more serious, she would inevitably have to confront their mother, there was no escaping this reality...


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12** \- _Resisting temptation - Colorado Springs _

In the meantime, Michaela was still living as a _resident_ in _the Gold Nugget_. She had failed to find suitable lodgings of her own, the proximity of the hotel to the hospital definitely was one of the reasons she did not really do all she could to find an apartment for herself. Moreover, one weekend, Sully had proposed to show her his homestead. He had driven to the outskirts of Colorado Springs and Michaela had been more than surprised when she saw Sully's house and the surrounding vastness of the land. She remembered Hank telling her that Sully had renovated the wooden log cabin all by himself, with amazing results. Now seeing it with her own eyes, made all the difference. Sully was more than pleased at the admiration she expressed for his ancestors' home. "It's beautiful, Sully," she had said, "Does all this land belong to you?" "Yep, it does." A few moments later, he had softly continued: "'Chaela, d'you see yourself living here with me?" standing behind her, his arms around her and kissing the top of her head. "Anytime, Sully," she had responded without a second's hesitation. "Good," he had chuckled. "D'ya wanna see the rest of the house?"

They had gone inside and Michaela had immediately felt at home. It all looked familiar to her, yet she knew she had never been here. She silently ranged her feelings of recognition in the same category as the ones she had felt when she had first met Sully. Something like a _déjà-vu_ experience, she thought to herself. Upstairs, Sully had shown her the master bedroom with a big double bed, adorned with the most exquisite, hand-carved headboard she had ever seen. "Did you carve this?" she wondered, her voice tainted with sincere admiration. "No," Sully replied, smiling at her question, "one of my ancestors did, somewhere around 1870. Seems it was a wedding present for his wife." "Fancy to have your husband carve such a marvellous piece of furniture for you," she mused. They looked at each other and Sully couldn't resist saying: "I'll carve many things for you, you'll see..." Surprised, she replied: "Well, I assure you that I will love whatever you will make for me, from what I've seen at Hank's, you're quite the expert!" They kept looking into each other's eyes, marvelling at the attraction they felt. Giving in to their hearts' desires, they embraced and started kissing. In no time, the atmosphere was heating up and without any further thought, they stretched out on the bed. Sully was immediately aroused. She felt his rigid state, and knew that he was struggling to hold back.

"'Chaela," Sully softly said, "when do you think you're ready to take the next step with me?" Michaela cringed inwardly. They had, on previous occasions, had this discussion quite a few times already and she had been adamant that she wanted to wait with any intimacy until they would be married. Yet she had to admit that she was having more and more problems to stick to her plan, it was awfully difficult to stop herself from letting go and give herself to him, her longing to finally find out for herself what being intimate with a man would feel like, was slowly getting the better of her. Here, in his splendid house surrounded by untouched nature, a house, wherein she would eventually come to live with him, being here in his bedroom, with his masculine scent all around her, she decided that she was not going to wait, she wanted him too, she was ready.

She sat up and pulled her tank top over her head, leaving her in her lacy bra. Sully almost burst with excitement, "'Chaela, what are you doing?" he croaked. She smiled at him: "I'm ready Sully, I no longer want to wait, me too, I can't stand it any longer, let's make love..." He thought his heart was going to fail in his chest, he almost suffocated, his breath stuck in his throat. In no time, he pulled off his shirt, jumped out of his jeans, shed his boxers and, with shaking hands, helped her out of her remaining clothes. When they were both stark naked, they took some time to admire each other's body, but their longing to join physically was so strong, that they inevitably clung to each other, wondering how to go about this, both trembling with nervous anticipation and a slight fear of what was about to happen between them.

"I don't know how to do this, I mean, I do know, but I've never..." Sully started to say, feeling once more like a stammering fool, and feeling highly inadequate how to handle this situation. He wondered if she would think him too inexperienced? Suddenly it struck him how much he valued her opinion of him, how much he wanted her to think of him as someone she could rely on, someone she could trust. He promised himself that he would always do all in his power to make her proud of him, her happiness, he mused, was his first priority. These thoughts somewhat calmed his anxiety.

Out of sheer nervousness, Michaela started to giggle. "I can't help you much, Sully, you know that I've hardly ever even so much as kissed another man, so I guess we'll have to figure this out by ourselves. Putting it plainly, I know that I will have to suffer a bit because it will be the first time that I make love with a man, but there seems to be no way to avoid that." Sully gulped. It was up to him now to take the lead. He tried to remember all the wise lessons Cloud Dancing had given him on the scary subject of women and making love to them, but as hard as he tried, he couldn't come up with anything useful.

Both felt that being skin-to-skin was more than overwhelming, their blood raced through their veins, their heartbeats reached unbelievable speeds and, on top of that, Sully noticed that his erection almost hurt him. His mind went blank, he let himself be guided by his instinct and natural urges. He leaned down and kissed her breast, teasing her instantly hardening nipple with his tongue, proud that she reacted so strongly to his caresses. He pressed himself against her, rubbing his manhood on her thigh, to which she responded with a deep sigh, longing for him to touch and caress her, to ease the tension building up in her centre, the pulsing of her inner muscles almost driving her crazy.

As if on cue, their hands reached down and started to caress each other's sensitive parts. Sully knew from what he had picked up from various friends, that a woman had what was called a clitoris, that it was necessary to massage it to prepare her for receiving the man inside of her and that it also served to give her the ultimate pleasure of experiencing an orgasm. Some years ago, driven by his natural interest for the other half inhabiting the planet, he had taken the time to look at some detailed drawings and pictures on the internet, curious to see how and where exactly all parts of the female genitals were located, so that he would at least be able to find the right spots, if ever he were going to make love with a woman.

At that time, pushed by his friends who reckoned Sully deserved to have some fun like they were having, he had been on a few dates with some girls, but it never had been something he was interested in to pursue so that the girls, disappointed, had let him be after a while. He never counted on meeting someone like Michaela. She had been so different from other young women, she had connected with him in a way he never would have thought possible, touched him in his inner self, urging him to bare his soul to her. He loved her unconditionally, she was his life now. His loneliness had come to an end.

Michaela, in turn, had enough medical knowledge of the human body to know how to deal with an erection, yet lacking the actual experience of touching a man in that state, she was surprised at the smoothness of that part of the male anatomy. Furthermore, if she was not mistaken, his size was more than average and this, she realised, would have to fit inside of her? The idea was preposterous and she almost burst out laughing, her nerves playing up again. She could hardly encircle him with one hand, and, moving slowly up and down, she heard him moan with pleasure. His touches and massaging of her centre elicited faint, high-pitched sounds from her, exciting him more and more. Yet with utmost willpower, he stopped his hand's movements and said to her: "'Chaela, I also want to wait until we are married to celebrate our first time. So why don't we just caress and touch each other so that we reach our climax without actually going all the way?"

Pulling herself back from the heavenly stupor she was in, Michaela looked at him and nodded her approval. She had always wanted to wait until she would be married to give herself to her husband for the first time, so Sully's consideration pleased her more than anything else. She continued to stroke him and he resumed massaging her centre. Before long, they both reached the point of no return, Sully turned on his back to make his semen spill out on his stomach and Michaela, feeling that she was close to going over the edge as well, witnessed with amazement how Sully ejaculated, with loud grunts which seemed to come from somewhere deep inside of him.

Michaela let herself go with a loud, very unladylike, high-pitched screech, revelling in the feelings of utmost pleasure as her inner muscles contracted over and over again. Catching her breath, she slowly descended from this marvellous high, vaguely noticing to herself that this was far more pleasurable than what she sometimes had experienced in her sleep... Intent on Sully's well-being, she got up to fetch some tissues to help him clean up, at the same time following his eyes which were rivetted on her nudity. She blushed crimson, realising that this was the first time that a man saw her walking around naked. Sully immediately understood and chuckled, "Don't be shy, 'Chaela, you're the first woman to see me in the buff as well."


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13** \- _Preparing the wedding - Colorado Springs_

When Michaela came back to the bed, Sully got up and made her sit down on the edge. He walked over to his chest of drawers, opened the top drawer and rummaged between his things, apparently looking for something. He closed the drawer and came back to her, while she was still sitting and waiting for him on the edge of the bed. She wondered what he was up to, but when he knelt down in front of her, she knew. Solemnly, Sully took her hands in his and said: "You do realise, Michaela, that we cannot delay much longer to get married? It's getting more and more difficult for us to control ourselves and our longing for each other. Don't you think? So here's what I want to ask you." He cleared his throat, realising the significance of that very moment for their future. With his deep, melodious voice, he put his life's most important question to her: "Michaela Quinn, will you do me the honour of becoming my wife?"

She didn't need long to think about it, and, looking straight into his eyes with all the love she felt for him, she said with a slightly quivering voice: "Yes, I do Sully, even though we have only known each other a few months, I too think it's time to take that big step. But you know, I could just as well go on the pill, so that we can go all the way, as you so nicely put it, instead of just caressing each other, we would not have to get married so soon." "You wouldn't have to go on the pill, I can use a condom, even though some of my friends say it's not as nice as making love without one. Does that mean ya don't wanna wait till we're married? Ya changed your mind 'bout that?" he enquired softly. "Yes, on the one hand I would like to wait, but on the other hand, I realise that it is getting more and more difficult not only for you, but for me too. You make me feel all sorts of things, I lose myself and I only know that I long to make love with you. And for you, I know that as a healthy young man, it cannot be easy not to be able to act upon your urges," she whispered, blushing again at speaking so openly on this delicate subject. "So what do we do now? Shall we get our marriage licence tomorrow or do we wait a few more months?" Sully wondered. Michaela thought of her mother and sisters. They would definitely not like it if she were to have just a modest wedding, but on the other hand, did she herself want a big fancy wedding like her mother had organised for all her four sisters? She knew the answer: she did definitely not want that.

"Do you know where we can get married?" she asked. "We could go to the Reservation, Cloud Dancing, my Indian mentor and brother, is the Medicine Man of the Cheyenne tribe and he is authorised to perform marriage ceremonies. But don't you want your family to attend?" "No, I don't mind having a modest wedding, I'm happy to it being just you and me. If I tell my family, my mother would take over and we would have to do things her way, things we don't want to do. And it would take quite some time before we could get married, because my mother and my sisters have all sorts of social activities from which they cannot free themselves on the spur of a moment. So yes, let's go and see your friends on the Reservation." "Shall we go and get the licence tomorrow? What time will you finish your shift? As far as I know, we'll just need some ID, such as a driver's licence. I think the Clerk's office will be open during normal office hours," Sully stated. "I'm on a late shift, starting at four in the afternoon, so we could go in the morning." "Fine, I'll tell Daniel to come in early, so that he can look after any equipment needing attention. I'll come and fetch you at the Gold Nugget at eight, we could have breakfast at Grace's first," he offered. "That will be fine." "But now I want to make this official." And with those words, he slipped a beautiful ring on her finger, murmuring: "Michaela Quinn, you are the love of my life and, with this ring, I tell the world that from now on, we are together and that soon, we will be officially married." "Where did you get this ring, Sully? Did you have all this planned?" Sully chuckled. "No, this ring belonged to my aunt. She told me that my ancestor, the first Byron Sully, had it made for his wife. It's been in my family for more than a century. I'm proud that from now on, you will wear it." They sealed their bond with a loving kiss.

The next morning, Sully left his home early. Before picking up Michaela, he had to buy a few groceries. One thing in particular he wanted to buy: a bottle of Champagne and the special glasses that went with it. If he was going to marry Michaela, he wanted to celebrate it with a glass of Champagne, in the proper glass. Since he never drank such a thing himself, he needed to see to it that when they would move into the homestead, he could at least invite her to toast with him on their future. After his shopping, he just made it in time to pick her up, it was a few minutes before eight o'clock when he pulled into the parking of the Gold Nugget. He parked his car beside Michaela's. At a few other occasions, he had already seen and admired her car. She had explained why this car was so special to her, it was a present her father gave her the day she graduated. He saw her approaching and he got out of his own car, an old battered Chevvy pickup. "Shall we first walk over to Grace's for breakfast? I'm starving," he suggested. "Yes, fine," she said. Taking her hand, they headed for Grace's.

As usual, breakfast at Grace's was delicious. Hank really had said nothing too much when he had told her that Grace was the best cook in and around Colorado Springs. Grace smiled her large southern smile when she saw them together. Seldom had she seen two people who seemed to be meant to be together. She enjoyed the way they looked at each other, if ever there was real love, then this was it, she mused. After breakfast, they walked back to Hank's parking yard and took Michaela's car to go into town to obtain their marriage licence. Sully was awed at her driving skills, admiring the way in which she expertly handled the clutch and changed the gears so smoothly.

At the Clerk's Office, all went well, it didn't take long to get all the formalities done. With the licence in their pocket, they headed out of the office. Outside, Sully swept her up in his arms, swirling her around, happy that they would soon be a married couple, starting out on a new life together. People watched and smiled, guessing that these two were madly in love, having plans to make it official. Michaela laughed out loud, "Sully! Put me down!" He did, but he also caught her lips for a lovely, long kiss, not minding the people in the street...

"Shall we go to my house?" Sully asked, feeling on edge and wanting to be alone with her as fast as possible for some very intense kissing, touching and cuddling, without half the town watching them. She caught on immediately at his intention and, already in a state of excitement by his mere nearness, she giggled like a lovesick teenager and said: "Mmm, I'd love that!" At his house, they parked the car and ran straight up to his bedroom. In no time, they shed their clothes and, skin-to-skin, they revelled in their loving caresses and touches, all the while kissing deeply, letting their tongues perform their dance of love. "I love you, Michaela," Sully whispered in between kisses, "I don't know how I ever have lived without you..." Michaela was touched by his words, "I love you too, Sully, you make me feel things I've never felt before..."


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14** \- _Thinking of the wedding - Colorado Springs_

With all the paperwork now in order, Sully called Cloud Dancing, telling that he would come and visit them in a few days, and that this time, he was bringing Michaela with him. He couldn't refrain from giving his brother the most exhilarating bit of news: their trip into town to obtain their marriage licence. "Do you intend to get married so soon?" Cloud Dancing had wondered, "Don't you think you should get to know each other a little better before taking that big step?" "Well, we discussed it, and we're pretty sure that this is what we want," Sully had explained. "Anyway, we will bring the marriage licence with us and then we can discuss it." He went on to tell Cloud Dancing that neither he nor Michaela had any desire for a grand, elaborate wedding, just the two of them in a modest ceremony was what they had agreed upon. On the other end of the line, Sully heard Cloud Dancing call out: "Congratulations!" followed by squeals of joy from Snow Bird who, in the background, had overheard the conversation.

Over the past months, Michaela had taken the habit of having a coffee at the hospital's cafeteria with Charlotte Cooper, who had become one of her closest friends and confidante, and who had followed the progress of Michaela's blossoming relationship with Sully with great interest. She was honestly thrilled that the couple had managed to overcome their initial shyness towards each other and was very amused at Daniel's role in the plot. Michaela had profusely blushed when relating all these very private events to Charlotte. The two friends had exchanged many wise tidbits on the subject of their male counterparts. Many years ago, Charlotte had gone through a painful divorce from her husband Ethan, who left her with two young children, Matthew and Colleen, and one baby, Brian, with no hope of ever receiving one single penny from her good-for-nothing ex-husband, forcing her to return to her profession as a nurse to provide for her three children. She was extremely lucky to have found a job at St Catherine's and, what is more, to like her job.

Furthermore, having known Sully for many a year now, Charlotte assured Michaela that Sully was of a rare breed, reliable, reasonable, always ready to lend a hand and, above all, a man of his word. She was convinced that Michaela could not have found a better husband-to-be. Charlotte's own three children doted on Sully who very often helped her out in matters of sports and other out-of-doors activities that her children participated in, but for which she herself hardly had time, the working hours of a head nurse often not coinciding with school hours. By chance, both Matthew and Colleen were very responsible youngsters and could by all means be trusted to take good care of their youngest brother.

In the children's ward of the hospital, there were quite a few children who received only rarely a visit from their parents or other relatives, often for reasons of cost of travelling and lack of time. Michaela was most impressed when Charlotte told her that Sully, when he was off-duty, often remained in the hospital to visit these sick children, he told them tales of the Cheyenne and played easy board games with them. The children were thrilled with his visits, which influenced their healing process positively.


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15** \- _August 2, 2005 - Cheyenne Reservation_

For the beginning of August, Sully and Michaela had arranged to make their working hours coincide, so that they had a few days off to go and visit Cloud Dancing and Snow Bird. Tuesday morning they left early in Michaela's car, and drove out to the Reservation, a two-hour drive. Michaela had started driving. They had taken the scenic route and, somewhere half-way, had stopped to admire the view and take a few pictures, as a future reminder of this memorable day. Wishing to continue, she had tended the keys to Sully, inviting him to drive. He had looked at her, not sure if he would be up to driving a car with manual gearshift, but not wanting to be any less than his bride-to-be, he decided to confront the challenge. Michaela was surprised how well he managed. From now on, she thought, she would more often let him have the steering wheel, so that she could at leisure admire the landscape or, when she was very tired, drop off for a nap while her beloved did all the driving... She was certain to fully enjoy such luxury!

Before long, they arrived at the Reservation. Driving up to his friends' house, the door opened immediately and Cloud Dancing and Snow Bird stepped outside to welcome them. Laying eyes on Michaela for the first time, the couple understood why Sully would be so smitten with this young doctor. She simply was exquisite, Cloud Dancing could not think of another word to describe her. He surreptitiously looked at her car, he was going to ask Sully what it was like to drive it...

Michaela was radiant, as usual, her broad smile instantly conquered everybody who met her and the way in which she treated people, was absolutely unique. With one look, a smile and a gesture, she managed to put everyone at ease, as if they had known her for a long time, instead of meeting her for the first time. Snow Bird couldn't help but notice the way Sully and Michaela looked at each other. She fully agreed with her husband that it was obvious that these two were _soul mates_. She had rarely seen such companionship and deep love in any of the couples of her acquaintance. She had prepared a few things for the upcoming wedding and she hoped that Michaela would appreciate the way in which the Cheyenne celebrated a traditional wedding. Since Michaela was coming from a wealthy family, she certainly would be used to luxury and comfort, and might therefore dislike the far more rustic and somewhat rough Indian customs. Sighing, Snow Bird decided to just let events take their course. If it turned out to be too much asked from such a sophisticated young lady, they could always make a booking at one of the four- or five-star hotels not far from the Reservation.

Sully introduced them all to each other. Michaela was impressed by his friends, she saw the wisdom in their eyes and she was more than eager to speak in detail with Cloud Dancing on the subject of the herbs and spices he used in his quality as Medicine Man for the tribe. But first, she realised she would have to let Sully and Cloud Dancing catch up with each other, she instinctively felt that the brothers needed to talk with each other in private. She turned to Snow Bird and said: "Shall we leave these two to themselves? I would love to see more of your Reservation here, and there are quite a few more things which I would like to speak with you about." Snow Bird nodded. She had noticed a certain hidden nervousness in Michaela, she could well imagine what the young woman was going through, so shortly before her marriage. "Let me show you around," she proposed. Michaela followed her in the direction of a wooded area, where she could distinguish not only trees and bushes, but also structures which she assumed were the typical teepees of the Cheyenne.

Cloud Dancing and Sully walked over to the house and went to sit on the porch. "Sully," Cloud Dancing began, "I must admit that your bride-to-be is even more beautiful than what I had gathered from your enthusiastic description. Congratulations, you're a lucky man." "Yeah," Sully admitted, "She's marvellous, not just physically beautiful, but once you'll get to know her, you will see that her mind and character are flawless too, just a little stubborn and proud from time to time, but I gladly take that into the bargain. And as a doctor, she is absolutely one of the best I have ever met." The love he felt for her was depicted clearly on his face. Cloud Dancing chuckled. "You'll agree that you have met your _soul mate?_ Do you remember that I told you that you would know when you would meet the woman of your life?" "Yeah, I remember. It was just like you said, the moment I met her, my heart knew that she was the one I'd been waiting for. But my mind refused to accept it, I thought she'd never agree if I asked her out on a date, so we had a bumpy start, until Daniel took it upon himself to make us both realise that we were acting foolish."

"So Michaela was also scared?" "Yeah, she told Daniel she felt very uncomfortable whenever I would be near her. Daniel told me that, so I realised there was nothing to be afraid of, and once we had kissed each other, we were more than all right. No more awkwardness, but sheer happiness. I've never been so happy in my entire life," he concluded. "Did you two have any intimate relations yet?" Cloud Dancing enquired, knowing Sully wouldn't mind him asking, amused to see his friend blush. "Not really, but we did do a lot of kissing and cuddling. We even got undressed at various occasions and then we touched and caressed each other. That alone is heaven, we both enjoy that a lot, not to say enormously. But we long to move on to take the next step and that one can only be taken once we're married. Both Michaela and I want to be intimate only after we are officially married. She did propose to go on the pill, so that we could go all the way, but after all, I think I do not want to live with her without making it legal. She is a doctor in the hospital, she has patients, young and old, I think she is entitled to want to do things the right way, even if it might be a bit old-fashioned." Sully fell silent.

Thinking of his upcoming marriage with Michaela and the inevitable union of their bodies, he felt nervous, would he meet Michaela's expectations? Apart from what he had gathered from friends, some books and his searches on the internet, he wanted to have some more advice from his Indian brother who had gotten married some years ago and was certainly able to help him on his way. "Cloud Dancing, can ya help me avoid making a fool of myself, since this is not only the first time for me, but also for her?" Sully looked expectantly up at his brother. The latter chuckled, "Of course. Let's take it right from the start." And with lots of detail, Cloud Dancing introduced Sully to the world of intimacy with a woman, even drawing out, in the soft soil, some very special instructions to make sure Sully would know where to look for those special spots on a woman's body and how to go about stimulating them...

Snow Bird and Michaela walked together in the direction of the woods. "Snow Bird, I am so glad to have finally met you. Sully has spoken so often about you and Cloud Dancing, that it almost seems as if I have known you all my life! But there are still so many things I would like to ask you, I just don't know where to start." "Well," Snow Bird responded, "let me start then by telling you a few things you should know about Sully. Just follow me, we will go to the teepee that will be your home for the coming days and nights. It's hidden in the trees, it is very private and I hope you will excuse the lack of comfort to which you are accustomed." And with those words, in amicable companionship, the two women walked up the hill to the clutter of trees forming a small forest, in the midst of which Cloud Dancing and Snow Bird had erected a teepee to accommodate the newlyweds after the wedding ceremony. Isolated from the rest of the world, Cloud Dancing was convinced that his brother would appreciate the peace and quiet of the woods.

In a clearing, there was a big teepee. Snow Bird raised the flap to let Michaela enter. A bed was spread out against the back wall of the teepee, consisting of rugs and typical Indian, colourful blankets. Near the other wall were two comfortable looking chairs. They sat down and, before starting to tell Michaela things about Sully, she looked her in the eye and asked: "You do love him, don't you?" "Yes, I do, very, very much," Michaela softly said, looking down at her hands which were now fidgeting with the fabric of her top. "It's just that I am a bit... scared. I have no experience at all at these things, I'm afraid Sully might be disappointed with me..." Snow Bird chuckled. "Don't worry, Sully's experiences with girls, or for that sake, women, are also non existent, so you both will have to learn and teach each other. He is with Cloud Dancing now and you can be sure that your husband-to-be is getting proper instructions how to go about your first night together. But now I want to tell you a few things about Sully and how he grew up." Snow Bird resumed Sully's youth and Michaela absorbed the details of all the sadness and sorrow that Sully had endured in his life so far.

Having talked for a long time, Snow Bird fell silent, lost in her own thoughts and worries about the young man who had gained such an important place in her heart, as well as in that of her husband. Michaela was near tears, her heart ached for Sully, compared to him, her own unpleasant experiences brought on by her brightness and quick-wittedness, often making her the laughing stock of her classmates, seemed insignificant. She quietly wiped her tears away. "Thank you Snow Bird, this will make my understanding of Sully so much easier. Compared to how he grew up, my youth has been flawless. But now I would like to have your advice on the upcoming wedding night. So far, Sully and I have done a lot of kissing and cuddling, we are so strongly attracted to each other, that we have even gone so far as to touch and caress each other, uhm... being completely undressed, both of us, but we never crossed the line to effectively join our bodies. But already this kissing and cuddling, Snow Bird, it was heavenly, really fabulous, we both enjoyed it so much, I hope what is going to happen soon, will also be so pleasant."

Snow Bird smiled. "No, it will not be so pleasant for you the first time, Michaela, but I think Cloud Dancing will give Sully a salve to put on his male part which will dull your pain a little bit. So if you are already familiar with each other's body, it will not shock you when he applies that salve. Try to relax as much as possible, once he has entered you, bend your knees and, even better, try to wrap your legs around Sully's pelvis, it will ease the pain. Cloud Dancing will also tell Sully to take it easy, Sully will be very eager and excited, but he will have to try and control himself for your sake. I will make a fire in the teepee and put a pitcher of warm water and some towels, after your first time, let Sully help you clean yourself, because there might be some bleeding." "How much pain will I have?" Michaela asked, curious to find out what was awaiting her. "It is different for each woman," Snow Bird assured, "but with the salve Sully is going to put on, I reckon you will feel a dull ache, nothing very painful." The two women continued talking of these very intimate details and Michaela, more and more reassured by what Snow Bird had told her, felt confident that she and Sully would be able to handle their first time of making love together without turning it into something very awkward...


	16. Chapter 16

**Chapter 16** \- _The wedding - Cheyenne Reservation_

Michaela and Sully, having had their talk with their friends, it was decided that the wedding ceremony would take place straight away after that. It proved to be a very solemn occasion, they were slightly overwhelmed with the important step they were taking. From now on, there would be no more _goodbyes_ in the evening, Michaela would move into Sully's homestead and their life together would begin. When Cloud Dancing asked Sully if he would take Michaela for his wife, his voice almost broke, but he was able to utter a _yes I do_, his eyes glistening with tears of joy and happiness. Michaela, noticing his emotion, felt her own eyes tear up and when Cloud Dancing asked her, if she would take Sully for her husband, she too had a problem to control her voice, but just like Sully, she managed to bring out her _yes, I do_. "Rings please," Cloud Dancing announced and, much to Michaela's surprise, Sully produced two rings, one for her and one for himself. They slipped these rings onto their respective fingers, and, with only eyes for each other, they vaguely heard Cloud Dancing announcing the customary _I herewith declare you husband and wife, you may now kiss the bride,_ as the irresistible force drew them to each other and they lost themselves in an all-consuming kiss, deepening to unprecedented depths as a promise of what was to come soon...

If the newlyweds thought that now they could withdraw to their teepee to consummate their marriage, they were in for yet another surprise. In fact, Snow Bird asked Michaela to come with her, whereas Sully was ushered to another room with Cloud Dancing. Wondering what was happening, Snow Bird explained that now came the time for her to prepare Michaela for her new husband with a ritual massage and to dress her up in a traditional Cheyenne after-wedding-gown. "So please undress," Snow Bird requested her. Bashful, Michaela looked at Snow Bird who understood Michaela's inhibitions and soothed her: "No need to be shy, Michaela, it's just the two of us in here and you will see, this ritual is very relaxing." Shoving her reserve aside, Michaela undressed and lay down on the bed Snow Bird indicated.

What followed, filled Michaela with awe and utter astonishment. With expert hands, Snow Bird administered one of the most heavenly massages that Michaela had ever experienced. She almost fell asleep, but Snow Bird did not let her do so, she motioned Michaela to stand up and helped her put on a gorgeous Cheyenne dress, made of the softest buckskin leather Michaela had ever felt on her skin. However, she was quite worried at her state of dress, saying: "Snow Bird, I don't want to be a nuisance, but I am still all naked under this dress, can't I put on some underwear?" "No, you can't, this is also Cheyenne tradition, as a new bride, you go to your new husband with only this dress on. Sully does not know this, so I would advise you pay special attention to his reaction when he notices you're not wearing any undies," she giggled. "Oh my, you really make me feel more than naughty, Snow Bird, did you also go through this ritual when you married Cloud Dancing?" "Worse," Snow Bird responded. "All the members of the tribe were present at our ceremony and I can tell you, there was nothing solemn or quiet about it, it was almost more than I could bear to hear all the remarks that were being made on the subject of our wedding night. And then, we did not have a teepee far away from prying eyes, when we withdrew, they were all there to make fun of us." Michaela cringed, the mere idea of a crowd of people being close-by when she and Sully would finally be consummating their marriage, was too awful to even be considered.

Stepping out of the room, Michaela could not believe her eyes. There, standing right in her line of vision at the end of the corridor, was Sully, dressed in the most gorgeous Cheyenne wedding robe she had ever seen. His legs were bare, as were her own, and she suspected that he was naked underneath that stunning robe, like she was under her dress. She fleetingly wondered if he had come to that same conclusion as far as her state of dress was concerned. They both wore Indian moccasins. He smiled innocently at her, she assumed that, like Snow Bird had predicted, he was unaware that underneath her dress, he would encounter her bare skin if he were to bunch it up...

Excitement washed over her. Her centre was pulsing and throbbing like mad, now where was that teepee? She could hardly wait to lay her hands on her stunning husband, to cover him in kisses, to caress the skin of his entire body and finally, give herself to him completely. Cloud Dancing and Snow Bird, noticing the longing in the eyes of their friends, were highly amused at their eagerness. Cloud Dancing handed Sully a pouch, which he slung over his head, letting it drop on his chest. Remembering Snow Bird's words, Michaela assumed that the pouch contained the salve which would help to lessen her pain when Sully would breach her virginity. Her stomach joined her centre, butterflies all over, in her belly too, she was afraid her knees would give in, she felt she would stumble and fall flat on her face...

Fortunately it did not come to that. Cloud Dancing took his wife's arm and together they preceded the newlyweds. From their car, Sully had retrieved their weekend bags, which he carried with him to the teepee. Arrived at their destination, their friends opened the flap and with a heartfelt _good luck_ and _enjoy yourselves_, they left the newlyweds alone.

Sully placed their bags in a corner of the teepee and turned around. "Michaela..." "Sully..." they started at the same time. Laughing, they flew into each other's arms. Sully stroked her back and, not encountering anything remotely resembling a bra, he almost choked with excitement when he realised she was not wearing one. Since he too was naked under the robe, he had an inkling that it would be the same for her, that she too was not wearing anything other than the dress. His nerves set in again and, trembling, he wondered how he was ever going to perform adequately? Tentatively he moved his hand down over her back, but again, nothing in terms of an undergarment could be felt. It almost was too much to bear...

Michaela, in turn, had felt Sully's body pressed against hers, his arousal evident, clearly noticeable, even though the robe was made of a thick layer of pigskin leather. "What do we do now?" she whispered, unsure what he expected of her. "Guess we better get rid of our clothes," he croaked, almost panting, hardly able to speak properly. She noticed his embarrassment. He managed to utter: "Did I feel it correctly that you are all naked underneath this dress? Are you trying to kill me?" "Same as you, Sully, if I'm not mistaken, you wear nothing underneath your robe either...?" He chuckled. "They really had us there, didn't they? What did Snow Bird do to you?" "She gave me the most heavenly massage I have ever had," Michaela confessed, continuing: "you'll see, my skin is all oily and smooth, and I am rather relaxed, even though I can't wait for us to start what we're supposed to do now." "Yeah, but first I have to put some salve on myself," Sully told her and, sitting down on the bed, he opened the pouch and took out the small jar of special ointment which she knew would help reduce her pain. "Just help me take off this heavy robe," Sully requested her. She stood in front of him and helped him slip it off. Almost at the same time, she felt how he bunched up her dress, to caress her centre. When he felt how moist she already was, he let out a deep grunt. "I'm almost dead here..." She moaned, _"Sullllyyy, hurry,_ I am about to explode too..."

Fully naked now, he leaned back and started to spread the salve on his most private part. Michaela watched in awe, at this very moment, this seemed to her the most beautiful sight in the world. She took the hem of her dress and pulled it over her head. Standing there fully naked in front of her new husband, she felt a fire starting to burn inside of her. If he didn't make love to her soon, she would melt in a puddle at his feet, she thought. Sully was totally lost when he saw his new wife in all her glory standing there, waiting for him to come into action. He was nervous, and trembled when thinking of what to do next. Michaela too, was trembling now, her nerves shooting through her body. The moment was nearing, they both knew it. "Lie down on the bed and spread your legs," Sully urged her gently. When she did as he asked, he kneeled between her. Slowly he entered her, taking care not to force too much.

She felt him inside of her, it was all so exciting, she was still trembling and so was he. He looked in her eyes. "You're as nervous as I am?" he asked softly. She nodded, unable to speak. Then she remembered Snow Bird telling her to bend her legs, even to wrap them around Sully. When she did so, Sully was surprised, "Why'd ya do that?" he wanted to know. "It helps to ease the pain, Snow Bird told me." "Cloud Dancing told me to go slow, not to force myself inside of you," Sully chuckled. "We're quite the pair, groping our way together to make this first time a success," Michaela giggled. "Lemme push some more," Sully suggested, increasing the pressure a bit more.

He slid inside and felt the barrier of her maidenhead. "I think I'm there, if I push any further, you're gonna be hurting some," he warned her. "Go ahead, don't wait any longer, let's get it over and done with once and for all," she encouraged him. He pushed slightly harder. With the increased pressure, she felt a dull ache, just like Snow Bird had predicted. Sully was too overwhelmed to notice, he only knew that he was almost completely inside of her, that it felt like heaven and that he wanted to start moving, letting himself go and reaching his climax. Then he too remembered Cloud Dancing's words. He had to massage Michaela's special spot... Oh my god, how could he have forgotten? He almost became frantic with not giving his new wife the pleasure she was supposed to feel.

Slowly he lowered his hand, holding himself up on one arm, which took off some of the hardness. He found her sensitive spot and started his massage. Michaela, already excited from all that had happened to her before, lost all control. Her mind went totally blank, with her husband inside of her and his fingers tantalizing her centre, she reached her climax within seconds, her muscles contracting around Sully's stiffness, the heavenly sensation not new to her, but still different because this was the first time she experienced an orgasm with her husband's manhood solidly anchored inside of her.

Sully was unable to hold still. He started to move, at first slowly, but then, as the fire inside him started burning brighter and brighter, he increased the speed of his thrusts. _"Sullllyyy, yessss,"_ Michaela moaned and, with a loud howl of sheer pleasure, Sully came over the edge, with a few loud groans he spilled inside of her, and, even through the haze he was in, he remarked that this was the most exhilarating experience of his life. To be united with Michaela, to have made her his wife, knowing that they would spend the rest of their lives together, made his heart overflow with an undying love for her.

Panting and sweating, he let himself fall beside her, covering her body half with his own, but she did not seem to mind. He leaned down and cupped her breast, taking the nipple in his mouth, ashamed that he had not done this before, being too eager to join their bodies.


	17. Chapter 17

**Chapter 17** \- _After the wedding - Cheyenne Reservation_

"How're you doing? Did it hurt bad?" "No, hardly at all, just a dull ache, nothing worth mentioning." "So did you enjoy our first time?" "I loved it, and you?" "I've never felt anything like this before. If this is the start, I wonder what else we're gonna find out together," Sully murmured, still awed by his feelings and the unbelievable sensations that had just racked his body. "I would like to clean myself a little bit, please pass me the pitcher with the water and the towels?" Sully wanted to hit himself on the head. How could he have forgotten that part of their intimacy? And to think that Cloud Dancing had been adamant that he must take special care of his wife afterwards.

He got up and took the towels and the pitcher. "Okay, open up for me, please," he asked her. "Sully, no, I'll do that myself," she started to protest. "Out of the question," her new husband insisted, "I caused you to bleed, so I'll have to help you clean up." And with those words, he set about wiping her centre with the towel he had wetted with the warm water. Once he was satisfied with the result, he wet another towel with the lukewarm water and thoroughly cleaned himself.

Mortified and highly embarrassed, Michaela tried to relax, only partly succeeding. When she saw that Sully also cleaned himself, she was awed by his consideration and his wish for hygiene. And then another thought struck her. "Sully, now that we have made love, all of a sudden I realise we never spoke of having children together. I mean, we didn't use any protection and you know I'm not on the pill, what do we do if I were to fall pregnant? Do you want us to have children straightaway or do you want to wait?"

Sully realised that she had a good point there, they had never spoken of getting a child so soon after having married. On the other hand, he wondered if it was reasonable to think she would fall pregnant so easily and so soon. "I would love to become a father, but you're the one to decide that, you will have to stop working for a while if you're pregnant and once the baby is born, you also might want to stay home for some months, whereas I can just keep my job, I don't have to stop."

She fell silent. The fact that it would have to be her own decision, disappointed her in a certain sense. She would have liked to take that decision together with him. But of course Sully was right that she was the one being affected most by the arrival of a little one. When she did not say anything else, Sully wanted to comfort her that all would work out for the better. "Why don't we just let nature have its way? You don't go on the pill and I don't wear protection, and if you fall pregnant, that will be the greatest joy for me." She nodded, "I think you have a point there. It might even take some time before a pregnancy would happen. Let's just enjoy the here and now..."


	18. Chapter 18

**Chapter 18** \- _An 'encore' performance... _

They cuddled some more, happy to be together and especially satisfied that their first time had worked out so well. No major disaster had occurred, they had been fairly at ease with this new form of intimacy, they felt they could start their life together fully trusting each other. They both dozed off and fell asleep. After some time, Sully woke up. Holding her naked body in his arms, so very close and warm, knowing that there were no longer any barriers for them to keep them from enjoying each other fully, Sully once more felt his manhood stirring. Michaela, in her half-sleep, couldn't help but feel it too, and she wondered what he was going to do about it. Not knowing how to broach the subject, he just stayed put, hoping Michaela would take the lead and let him know if she were ready and willing to renew their union a second time.

His bodily reaction to her closeness provoked the now familiar pulsing and throbbing in her centre. Could she be so bold as to ask him to repeat that wonderful encounter they had lived through just a while ago? "Sully," she hesitatingly murmured, "I feel your... uhm... you know... do you want to... uhm... again?" He chuckled. "Only if you want it as well, 'Chaela, please don't feel obliged to do it just for me, as if it were your duty. I don't want you to give in because of that. We should enjoy making love 'cause we both want it. But if you want to do it once again now, we can take it easy and go slowly this time, make it last..." She nodded her consent, too overwhelmed to voice her longing for him.

This time, they both knew a bit better how to go about this. Lying side by side, they caressed each other's body, Sully suckled her nipples, one after the other, all the while caressing her sensitive spot, eliciting small sounds of pleasure from her. Michaela, in turn, lovingly caressed him too, provoking moans of pleasure to escape his throat. Sully was surprised at her responsiveness. At his mere touch, her centre felt moist and inviting in no time, so he had to muster all his willpower to keep from joining her too soon, this time he wanted to make their union last, so that Michaela too would experience as much pleasure as possible. He kissed his way down to her belly button, intending to go further down.

Suddenly he remembered some images he once had seen on the subject of different positions one could enjoy when making love. Wondering if he would ever the courage to suggest trying out some of these challenging endeavours, he abandoned the thought, making a mental note to talk with her about it before effectively bringing it into practice. He turned around and positioned himself between her legs. He guided himself inside of her, ready to withdraw the moment she would show any sign of pain or soreness. After all, breaching her virginity had only occurred just one hour ago...

"Does it hurt?" he enquired, full of consideration for his beloved new wife. "No, no, not at all, please go on, don't stop," Michaela urged him on. He pushed further inside, until he felt he could go no further. It was as if both their minds were shut off now, all that was left, was their instinctive knowledge that this was what they had been longing for since the day they met. Michaela wrapped her legs around him, which enabled him to push himself even deeper inside. _"Oh, my god,"_ he panted in her ear in-between kisses, "this really is heaven, 'Chaela... how did I get so lucky?" "Feels like paradise," she agreed, "I think I'm the lucky one here." If marital life included this, she thought, she had no doubt that they would be able to make it work. It seemed that they were made for each other, their bodies fitted together like the pieces of a puzzle. "May I move?" he whispered. "Yes, please," she whispered back. And so their second dance of love began, making them forget the world outside, taking them on a journey to an unknown universe, where they would be making their way together, discovering what pleased the other, never relenting in their undying love for each other.

There were no words to describe what they felt. These new sensations, strange at first, were becoming familiar and they instinctively knew that they would never tire of making love together. Sully also knew that she held his heart, that no other woman would ever be able to come between them and deep down inside himself, he knew that Michaela too had completely given him her heart. He felt he could trust her and he hoped she would trust him too. Even though they were both inexperienced as far as intimacy was concerned, he could not imagine that either of them would ever get curious to know how making love to someone else would be, what they had together, was so special, that he wondered if other couples also enjoyed such perfection. He had stilled his movements, wanting this second time to last quite a bit longer than the first. "Gotta stop to cool down some," he murmured in her ear, "don't want it to be over too soon..."

Michaela couldn't help but giggle at this male predicament. She was basking in the sensations he was triggering in her body, sensations of a hitherto unknown intensity, a pleasure so overwhelming, that all her rational thoughts were pushed to the background of her mind and she too was acting and reacting purely and simply out of instinct. Feeling him so solidly nestled inside of her, his manhood throbbing and pulsing, filling her and evoking sheer impossible feelings of heaven, hell and paradise all at the same time, was something she had never suspected to exist. She tried to remember when her last monthly had been, calculating if it were possible that she might already fall pregnant right after getting married, but when she had figured it out, she had to conclude that it was highly unlikely. She sighed. It would surely happen one day, she had an inkling that the frequency of their amorous antics would be rather high, looking at her virile husband, she was more than sure that he would prove to have the stamina of a race horse...

Thinking of their jobs at the hospital, she was vaguely reminded that many a nurse had thrown longing looks at Sully, more than at Daniel, who was far more experienced in his way with women. A pang of jealousy crossed her mind. Would Sully ever be unfaithful to her? And what would her reaction to that be if she were to find out? She scolded herself for having such thoughts, barely married, she let her mind already wander in that direction, did she not trust him? Well yes, she admitted to herself, she fully trusted him, but could she trust other young women to keep away from him? She chased these thoughts out of her mind, no use to start worrying where no worry was needed...

Having somewhat calmed down, Sully resumed his movements. First at a slow pace, but inevitably his natural urges drove him on and he increased his speed. Michaela was revelling in the passion it awoke in her, she was surprised at the intensity of her feelings, caressing him in all the right places, he reached his peak, panting in her ear: "Can't hold on any longer, _arrgggghhh,_" and with violent convulsions, he spilled his semen inside of her, feeling transported on a cloud of floating, undescribable sensations. Fleetingly the thought crossed his mind that there were going to be frequent occasions of making love with Michaela, this was feeling so good, he knew he was going to be longing for her almost night and day. He hoped she was feeling the same longing, otherwise they would have their first little problem there...

Michaela, feeling her husband having his climax, let herself completely go as well, relishing in the heavenly feeling of her own bodily reactions. With racing heartbeats, they tried to catch their breath, getting back to normal, before looking into each other's eyes to ensure that all was well with the other. "No pain?" Sully enquired softly. "None at all," she whispered. "This feels so good, Sully, did you ever expect it to be this way?" "Naw, I remember my friends saying that it was awesome, but what I have felt with you, beats it all. It's more than I ever dreamt of." Awed that even their second time of making love together proved to be a blatant success, she looked forward to a life at Sully's side. Being his wife, she mused, was one of the best things that had ever happened to her.

They cuddled up into each other's arms, blissfully happy. Sleep overtook them, but, during the night, they woke up and, unable to resist their mutual attraction, they inevitably joined their bodies to relish their lovemaking. Sully was very content to be able to keep up with the repeated claim laid upon his potency. He had never had any cause nor taken the opportunity to be with a woman and he had no idea of his endurance in any sexual matters. Apart from some nocturnal events, he had wondered how often he would be able to make love with Michaela. From his friends, he had never heard any details what life with a woman really was like, let alone that they would say something about the frequency of making love... Michaela, in turn, blessed the use of Cloud Dancing's salve which saved her from being sore inside, which would have rendered it more difficult for her to fully respond to her husband's urges. As it was, she had nothing to worry about and each reunion increased their pleasure and understanding of the things which particularly pleased the other.


	19. Chapter 19

**Chapter 19** \- _Where do you want your breakfast?_

"Cloud Dancing, do you think I should go and bring those two newlyweds some breakfast? Or do you think they do not yet need any food?" Snow Bird wondered. Cloud Dancing chuckled. "Can't do any harm to enquire if they want to come to our house for breakfast or if they want us to bring them something to eat in their teepee," he responded. "Shall I go and ask them, or do you want to go?" "Why don't we just go together?" her husband proffered. Leisurely, hand in hand, they walked over to the teepee and, nearing it, Cloud Dancing called out: "Sully and Michaela, how about some breakfast? Do you want to come to our house, or shall we bring you something to eat in the teepee?"

Inside the teepee, the couple looked at each other, both stark naked, clinging to each other with hardly bearable passion, their bodies constantly on fire with the attraction they felt for each other. Sully cleared his throat. "I guess we'll have something to eat here in the teepee, if you don't mind, we're not yet ready to face the world..." "Okay, we'll bring you something to survive on," Cloud Dancing promised and, smiling at his wife, he said: "It's understandable, who wants to stop cuddling when you're just married?" Thinking to himself: _and with such a gorgeous wife, who would want to leave her side if only for just one minute?_ Snow Bird, on the other hand, had her own thoughts. _With someone like Sully, with such looks and such a gorgeous, virile body, what woman would not want to remain locked up with him in a teepee for some days and nights, far from prying eyes?_

At home, Snow Bird prepared a tray with a choice of food and drinks, _enough to feed an army_, Cloud Dancing remarked jokingly, but glad that his friends apparently had so much enjoyed the consummation of their marriage, that they wanted to prolong their isolation in the teepee and continue their exploration of all the pleasurable things that physical intimacy had to offer. He took the tray from Snow Bird and followed her towards the teepee in the woods. "Hello there! We put the tray with some food and drink here at the entrance!" they warned the occupants, very well aware that the state of dress of the newlyweds would be anything but decent...

From the teepee came the answer in the form of a heartfelt _Thank you!_ the newlyweds thus acknowledging their friends' kindness. "We will also bring you something for lunch," Snow Bird announced, continuing: "if I remember well, Cloud Dancing and myself only emerged from our teepee after something like three days, and I wouldn't be surprised if you are going to do the same!" "We don't know yet, Snow Bird," Michaela chimed in, "we will both have to be back at work on August the 3rd, that's next Wednesday, and then I still have to move all my things into Sully's homestead, so I'm not sure that we will remain hidden in here very much longer after today. Sully, what do you think? Shall we join Snow Bird and Cloud Dancing for breakfast tomorrow morning and then drive back home?" "All right with me," they heard Sully agree. "Okay, we'll leave you to it now then, see you tomorrow morning." And with those words, the couple turned and retreated to their house.

The entrance flap of the teepee opened and Sully's arm emerged to pull in the tray with their breakfast. To their great joy, there was a big thermos with piping hot coffee. Sully poured two cups and handed one to Michaela, feasting his eyes upon her nudity. _God she is beautiful,_ he couldn't help but think, his arousal instantly firing up and getting out of control once more. "Here you are, Mrs Sully," he said, smiling his dimpled smile at her, his ocean-blue eyes twinkling with mischief, love, lust and, last but not least, passion to ravish her again there and then.

Michaela took her cup and seeing that he was again getting excited, she chuckled. "Sully! Don't you have enough yet?" He blushed, "Can't help it, you're so beautiful and seeing you like this, all naked, turns me on more than you will ever know..." "Let's just drink our coffee and then I'll see if I can be of any use with your urges..." she proffered laughingly. In no time their cups were empty. Sully as well as Michaela were more than eager to once more seal their union with an extremely passionate encounter, both reaching heights of exquisite pleasure, kissing, caressing and touching each other in places they knew the other would especially appreciate.

Once taken care of her husband's abounding libido, Michaela poured some more coffee and they sat down to enjoy their breakfast. Even though the quantities would have been enough to feed an army, they were so hungry that they almost cleared the tray of its contents. The fresh bread, hot bacon and eggs, freshly pressed fruit juices and fruit salads made out of fresh fruits, were exquisite. Michaela made a mental note to thank their friends and, in the case of a return visit which she hoped would occur soon, she was going to go out of her way to make it as memorable for them as they had made their wedding day and night for them.

After breakfast, Michaela asked Sully if there were any means of taking a shower or a hot bath. "There's better than that," he answered, "there are some hot springs not far from here. Put on your dress, I'll take you there." "I have no underwear," she giggled. "You don't need any, where we're going we'll be all alone, no living soul to be seen in a radius of twenty miles," Sully soothed her. From their bags, he took out a t-shirt and a pair of buckskin pants, Indian style. Stepping into their moccasins and picking up some towels, a bar of soap and a bottle of shampoo, the lovers headed out of the teepee towards the hot springs for some much needed bodily hygiene.


	20. Chapter 20

**Chapter 20** \- _Out in the woods - the hot water spring_

After a ten minute walk along a path in the woods, Michaela found herself in a secluded spot where a small waterfall was shedding its apparently warm water straight into a pool. Sully pulled off his t-shirt and stepped out of his buckskin pants, Michaela in turn took off her dress as well. To be like this, without clothes, out in the open, was quite an adventure for her. She had never done this before. "Are you sure we're alone here, Sully?" she asked, nervous that some unexpected wanderer, or worse, more than just one, would stumble upon them while they were having a bath in the hot water. "Positive," Sully reassured her. We are far from any road, the people from the Reservation don't come here, so you can relax, nothing unexpected will happen."

The water was lovely, they washed each other, he paid special attention to her breasts and centre, and she, in turn, relished in letting her hands travel over his body, "Oh Sully," she called out, trying to voice over the noise of the falling water, "this is lovely, I have never taken a bath like this in the open air!" They burst out laughing, "Told you it would be nice, so come here and let me hold you!" he also raised his voice to let her hear him.

They were greatly amused that things worked out so well. Bathed by the morning sun, they held each other close, the warm water was inviting them to wade into the warm pool, all the while touching, kissing and caressing each other. Inevitably they were drawn to join their bodies again, she fleetingly wondered if this was at all normal, but since it felt so overwhelmingly good, she concluded that nothing was wrong with them, they were newlyweds and it seemed that in that quality they were allowed to indulge in endless lovemaking... "I love you, Michaela," Sully spoke in her ear, "until my dying day," making sure that she understood him.

She pulled back and looked into his eyes. That blue, forget-me-not colour would always do the trick, she simply melted in his arms. Approaching his ear, she clearly stated: "And I love you, till the end of times, Mr Sully, more than words can tell." His movements inside of her became more frantic and after a while of delicious togetherness, moving in the age-old rhythm of love, they cried out in unison when they reached their pinnacle. The woods echoed their cries of joy and happiness and both wished these moments would last forever.

They dunked their heads, wetting their hair in the warm water and, grabbing the shampoo, they helped each other wash first his honey-coloured locks and then her auburn, long strands. The massaging of their heads by their hands, proved to be another arousing means of awakening their senses, but silently they agreed that the lovemaking would have to wait until they would be in their teepee again.

Refreshed and blissfully happy, they gathered their belongings and made their way back to the teepee. The sun was beating down on the teepee so inside, the air was comfortably warm. The coffee in the thermos was still hot enough to be tasteful. Sully slipped off his shirt and shed his pants, he sat down on the bed, leaning against the wall, motioning his stunning wife to do the same and sit between his legs.

She looked at him, marvelling at the sight he made and slightly envious of the ease with which he dared expose himself to her. His gorgeous chest and, further down, his nether parts, did not fail to turn her on again. The throbbing and pulsing in her centre started all over again and she hoped, he would act upon that soonest.

She pulled her dress over her head and, trying to hide her embarrassment at her nudity, giggling when she noticed that by just taking off her dress, her virile husband was again fully aroused. Blushing, she sat down between his legs, leaning her back against his bare chest. He immediately circled her with his arms, cupping her two breasts, one in each hand, slowly rolling her nipples between his thumb and finger. At her lower back, she felt him pulsating against her bare skin, but Sully did not say anything. He did not make one single move to initiate any intimacy and she wondered, if he was silently encouraging her to take the lead?

Sensing her slight discomfort, Sully rest his head on hers, revelling in the emotions he felt at being so close to her, the peace of the forest around them penetrated his mind, banning all thoughts of the world outside, turning these moments of uninterrupted bliss with Michaela into indelible memories, which they would draw upon in the years to come, helping them conquer sorrow and pain, disagreements and arguments.

Michaela, feeling just as blissful as her husband, had been thinking of her family back in Boston. Sighing, she knew the issue had to be addressed, so she began: "Sully?" "Mmm?" "I was just thinking, we will have to go to Boston to pay my family a visit, after all they are entitled to know that I have married you."

Since the subject of this rather dreaded visit was not one to excite him in any special way, she felt him softening, realising once again how amazing nature was... "Guess you're right. D'ya wanna drive or fly?" "I think we don't have time to drive, it would take us far too long, so I think flying is the only choice. We'll have to organise a few days off together." "Yeah, I'm sure we can manage that," he responded, confident that they would be able to soon face the ordeal of meeting her family, and especially her mother, at one time or another...

Dozing off in the warmth not only of the teepee, but also of their close embrace, Michaela let her mind wander over the events that had taken place in her life recently. She also thought of the future, what would it bring them? Would they manage to work things out, considering their different backgrounds? What would her family say about Sully? She could well imagine that her sisters would be a pain, to the point of even insulting Sully on his lower station in life.

Only Rebecca, Michaela knew she would be thrilled. She was the only one of her sisters who had married for love. The other three, she mused, were more interested in their husbands' fortunes and positions in life, than anything else. Michaela knew for sure that Marjorie's husband was cheating on her, but then, Marjorie herself behaved quite frivolous too, probably also cheating on him. Michaela cringed at the idea of Sully cheating on her, she reckoned she would be devastated if that were to ever happen...


	21. Chapter 21

**Chapter 21** \- _Lunchtime - Cheyenne Reservation_

Snow Bird brought out a tray with their lunch. Sully woke from his nap and heard her approaching the teepee. "Hello there!" Snow Bird loudly announced her arrival. "How are you doing?" "We're not decent," Sully called back at her, wanting to avoid Michaela to feel utterly embarrassed if Snow Bird were to enter the teepee. "I've seen you both naked before," Snow Bird laughed, "but don't you worry, I just put the tray with your lunch here. For dinner, do you think you two are willing to put on some clothes and join Cloud Dancing and me for the meal?" "Yeah, that would be great," Sully accepted her invitation, "I suppose by then we will have enough of each other!" "I'll never get enough of you," Michaela whispered in his ear, feeling his instant reaction in her lower back. "See you this evening then, 'round about six, is that okay?" "Yes," they called back, both getting fired up again with the lust they felt racing through their bodies.

Assuming Snow Bird had retreated, Michaela got up and, opening the flap of the teepee, she pulled the tray with their lunch inside. The food was delicious, Michaela discovered a few new dishes, Cheyenne specialties, and was thankful for Sully to explain to her what each unknown dish consisted of. They fed each other bits and pieces of food, Sully would often lean over to her lips into his, often descending to her breasts, taking one of her nipples in his mouth, teasing it with his tongue, eliciting soft moans of pleasure from her, all the while being fully aroused himself as well, longing for lunch to be over, so that he could show her once more how much he loved her...

"What we do now?" he asked her, not wanting to inflict on her his unsatiable longing to unite with her. She laughed, understanding without any more words that he was eager to be close to her again. "The bed?" indicating with a nod of her head that she assumed they would be most comfortable there, stretching out leisurely, fully sated after such a tasteful lunch. That they would once again make love, was evident to her. Sully was immediately on fire, he wondered if his urges would slacken over the coming days, how was he to go to work if he was constantly thinking of his stunning wife and the exquisite sensations she swamped him with at each of their encounters?

Sighing, he got up and stretched down on his back, his manhood as usual sticking out proudly, inviting her to take any action she might wish to indulge in. She looked at him, she loved him so much, it was almost suffocating her. She stretched out beside him and started stroking him. He groaned, this felt so good, he reached down to give her the same pleasure. After a while, he sensed they were both getting to the point where joining became a must, an inevitable consequence of the attraction between them.

Michaela noticed that the pleasure she felt while making love with Sully, was getting more and more intense. This time as well, the anticipation of the upcoming sensations made her shudder with pleasure. So when, after a lot of kissing, licking and sucking, they finally joined, she actively participated in all the movements, first slow, then speeding up to become frantic, meeting his powerful thrusts with such enthusiasm, that Sully could only think how blessed he was with such a passionate lover. Michaela was every man's dream, he was sure of that. Reaching their peaks was getting intenser as well, the hours they had dedicated to exploring their bodies had been well spent, their foreplay left nothing to desire for, they only joined when Michaela was ready and Sully on the brink of exploding. With much consideration he had enquired if she was not getting sore, but to his delight, she had answered that even though she was surprised how often they felt the need to make love, she was not at all incommodated by this rather high frequency...

They spent the afternoon cuddling and kissing, taking naps and telling each other all sorts of details about their respective younger years. Sully was amused to hear her tell about the rare times she had accepted to go on a date, and how disgusted she had felt at the boys' attempts at kissing her. Sully, in turn, had told her about the few girls he had dated, never very long, because it had never felt right. Much to the regret of said girls, he had kept them off, trusting in Cloud Dancing's words that, one day, he would meet his _soul mate_.

When the time came to have dinner, they got dressed and walked over to Cloud Dancing and Snow Bird's house. The meal was delicious, again Sully explained each dish whenever there was one Michaela did not know yet. They complimented Snow Bird on her expertise. "When do you two have to leave again?" Cloud Dancing asked. "Well, next Wednesday we both have to go back to work, so I was thinking of heading home tomorrow, so that we have enough time to move all Michaela's things to her new home," Sully informed his friends.

Michaela nodded, she agreed with Sully's plans, although deep inside, she reflected that he might have discussed this with her first. She made a mental note to pay attention that, in future, all decisions which concerned her as well as Sully, should normally be properly talked over with her.


	22. Chapter 22

**Chapter 22** \- _Dinner with friends - Cheyenne Reservation_

In the evening, Michaela finally had a chance to ask Cloud Dancing about all the herbs and spices his ancestors used for various ailments. The two of them walked over to Cloud Dancing's cabinet and were soon lost to the world, fascinated by the chance to be able to communicate with a kindred spirit. Sully and Snow Bird watched them walk away, their glances clearly demonstrating the love they felt for their respective partners.

"Sully," Snow Bird began, "we have known each other for many years now, so I suppose you will understand that I am not trying to pry into your private life, but are you happy with Michaela?" Sully smiled at her. "If I'm happy? Happy is not the right word, Snow Bird, I'm more than happy, I'm ecstatic, it feels as if I am walking on a cloud, I have never felt like this, Michaela completes me in all I do, she is every man's dream, I think." "And your intimacy, did that work out the way you wanted it to be?" "Thank you for preparing Michaela, Cloud Dancing did a good job when he gave me all his advice, the salve came in handy too, Michaela hardly felt any pain and, uhm... we could be together as often as we wanted, she never was incommodated by any soreness or pain. There is one thing that surprises me, Snow Bird," he hesitated, this was a very personal remark and he was not sure if he wanted to hear Snow Bird's opinion on the matter.

Snow Bird, noticing his hesitation, urged him on, "Don't be shy, Sully, just ask me, you know there is nothing you cannot discuss with me." "Well," Sully began, "it's about the frequency of our lovemaking. We just don't seem to get enough of each other. I thought lovemaking was something people did once or at most twice a day, but we're all the time at it, are we normal?" Snow Bird smiled at him. "You're both young and healthy, so every time you feel like making love, why not? Just be careful not to force yourself upon Michaela, she has to be just as eager as you are and, if not, you will just have to wait for her to signal her readiness to you. If you succeed in speaking openly about these very personal feelings and longings, you will never have a problem. But if you lock yourself up, she will have no means of recognising your feelings and urges. So, communication is one of the most important habits if you want your marriage to work out." "Thank you, Snow Bird, you're like a mother to me, always have been." With those words, their conversation shifted to other, less delicate subjects.

Michaela and Cloud Dancing were thrilled to exchange their knowledge and views on a great variety of ailments, the use of herbs and spices was certainly not unknown to Michaela, but to speak to someone who actually used it almost daily in his practice, was a treat she fully indulged in. After some time, and feeling completely at ease with her, Cloud Dancing, curious to find out if his salve had been of any use, dared to broach the subject. Showing her said salve, he told her how it was made, using the opportunity to ask her: "This is the salve I gave to Sully. Did it do any good?"

Michaela couldn't help blushing, but being equally at ease with Cloud Dancing after their interesting exchange of medical issues, she told him: "I was scared that it would hurt a lot, but luckily, all I felt was a dull ache which immediately subsided. And, afterwards, I've not had any discomfort or pain, and believe me, we repeated the experience quite often." "That was to be expected," Cloud Dancing reassured her, "I know my brother is so deep in love with you, that it is not surprising your joining together would occur quite often after your marriage. This will certainly calm down in the near future, believe me, but for the time being, you will come together very often, until the novelty wears off and you will find your peace and quiet again." "Was it like that for Snow Bird and you?" Michaela asked, curious to know more on this specific subject. "Exactly like that," Cloud Dancing chuckled, "but we were not, like you, in a very private teepee, we had the entire tribe continuously firing us on, even mocking us and making fun of us, calling out with all sorts of advice that in fact we did not really need. Those were quite memorable days, I can assure you, I will never forget them!" "I am glad we had the privacy of the forest, I will never forget these days either," Michaela confessed, "and I wish to thank you and Snow Bird for your excellent guidance of two virgins!" They both burst out laughing, like old buddies they left the room to join Sully and Snow Bird.

Wishing their friends a good night, the newlyweds headed for their teepee. The sun had set, but the air was still warm from the sun's heat. Sully had his arm around Michaela's shoulder and she had wrapped hers around Sully's waist. "Did you learn a lot about herbs and spices?" Sully enquired. "Oh, Sully, it was fantastic! I hope we will come here soon again, there is so much more Cloud Dancing wants to show me! And you, how was your talk with Snow Bird?" she was curious what they had talked about. "Well," Sully began, "my talk with Snow Bird was very, very instructive. She told me about their first night together and that they were constantly harassed by the other members of the tribe! We're lucky to have had such private quarters." And with those words, they silently walked on and enjoyed inhaling the pure forest air.

Once in the teepee, Sully completely shed his clothes, and again she was struck by the ease with which he moved around, seemingly not minding his state of undress. Forcing herself to be less bashful, she also shed her clothes and, when they looked at each other, it was as if a hidden force took possession of them. _"'Chaela!"_ Sully croaked, and in turn, Michaela urgently whispered: _"Sulllyyy!"_ They flew into each other's arms, hearts speeding up and blood racing through their veins, as if they had been deprived of each other for days and not just a few hours. Closely entwined, their bodies on fire, they stumbled to the bed. "It feels like we have been apart for days, instead of just a few hours," Sully huskily uttered. "Seem so to me too," Michaela responded, "I could hardly wait to be close to you again," she managed to say, instantly letting herself fall down on the bed, stretching her arms out to him to have him join her.

It was overwhelming. The sensations they provoked in each other were out of this world. Their moans and groans mingled, echoed in the woods, Michaela's high-pitched screech when she came over the edge, urged Sully on, and soon he too felt he was losing control. He entered her slowly, he controlled himself and carefully tried to avoid any discomfort for her. She wrapped her legs around him, urging him on, but he wanted to make it last and kept his thrusts at a very slow pace. "Oh, 'Chaela, this is something so wonderful, are you enjoying it as much as I do?" he whispered, hoping to cool down a bit. "I love you so much, I will never tire of this," he vowed, his devotion to her endless, and, by stilling his movements, he knew he could make this encounter last longer than their previous ones. Michaela, in turn, was awed at her husband's ability to make her feel things she had never felt before. He was deep inside of her now, it felt wonderful and she hoped they would continue to enjoy their love life for the rest of their lives. "I love you so much, Sully, and yes, I enjoy this as much as you do, take your time and let's not hurry anything."

They indeed took their time. Later on, Michaela mused that this was the longest encounter they had ever had since they got married. Sully had alternated stilling himself, remaining motionless for some time to calm down, and resuming thrusting in and out of her. It felt heavenly, she revelled in these sensations, the emotions coursing through her mind and body, were unique. She wondered how all this would develop with the years. When Sully felt he was almost going over the edge, he had stilled again, chuckling at her: "Gotta stop, cool down a bit... How're you doing?" "I'm fine," she murmured, "it is as if am away from the world, Sully, I stopped knowing where I am a while ago, when I am like this with you. Can't put it into words, it's all too much," she murmured, her heart overflowing with love for this very special man.

Little did she know that, a few years later, she would discover some more special sides of her husband, which would deepen the love she felt for him even more than what she felt for him now, so shortly after their wedding. Sully chuckled, "It's more than heavenly, what we share here. Did you ever expect this?" "No, never did I expect that it would be like this. From the little bits and pieces that I heard, it always seemed that women were by far not enjoying lovemaking as much as men do. But in my case, I think I have found in you the one man in the world who is able to make me enjoy it just as much as you do." He was very proud of his ability to make her so happy and he silently thanked Cloud Dancing for his expert tuition on the subject of lovemaking. Without his advice, Sully knew he would never have been able to handle their first time together in such a perfect manner.


	23. Chapter 23

**Chapter 23** \- _Going home - Colorado Springs_

Saying goodbye to their friends was sad, but they promised that they would soon pay each other regular visits, Sully's homestead offering plenty of room to receive them for as long as they wished. The drive home was relaxed, the scenic route offered them a variety of views, and Michaela admired the splendour of the Colorado nature. Forests with high trees were interspersed with areas filled with low bushes, sometimes open spaces would suddenly crop up from where they caught magnificent glimpses of the mountains in the distance. Michaela had given her car keys to Sully, relishing being driven.

Sully in turn, was very flattered that she would trust him with her beloved car, doing the best he could not to make the gears screech whenever he changed them. He enjoyed driving a manually geared car, he had to admit that the adherence to the road of Michaela's car, was quite something else than what his old pickup Chevvy felt like on the road. Moreover, Michaela had told him that her car was, what she called, a _quattro_, meaning it had a permanent all-wheel drive. In winter, when streets would be covered in snow, that certainly would be a most welcome feature. Since Michaela was of course continuing to work in the hospital, she would now have to drive out there by car and, in winter, Sully knew that the road leading to his homestead, was never one of the first to be visited by the City's snow shovelling engines...

Bathed in the bright sun of summer, Sully's homestead looked gorgeous. Michaela's heart swelled at the thought that this was now her home, that from now on, she would spend her days and nights with the love of her life there... She secretly hoped that it would not take too long for her to fall pregnant, the idea of being a mother very much appealed to her and she was sure that Sully would make a great father. She had gathered such from his interaction with the sick children in the hospital.

Sully took their two bags out of the car and walked up the few steps leading to the porch. He dropped the bags beside the door and returned to her. Sweeping her up in his arms, lovingly gazing in her eyes, he announced: "Gotta carry you over the threshold, Mrs Sully, let's do this in style!" Michaela squealed with delight. It felt so good to be in his arms, to see the love in his eyes... She forced herself to be fully alert, she wanted to memorise all these sensations for the future.

It was nice and cool inside the homestead. Sully put her down and turned to fetch their two bags. Closing the door behind him, he locked eyes with Michaela. Awed by the attraction she exerted on him, he just stood there, hoping she would take the lead, for again he felt like tearing off not only hers, but also his own clothes to be skin-to-skin with her delicious body. Being newlyweds was one thing, he thought, but this almost permanent longing to make love with her, was something new to him, something he had never experienced nor expected. Snow Bird's words came back to mind that he should be careful not to force Michaela into making love just for his own sake, she should be eager and consenting as well. So he just stood there, waiting for things to happen. Did she feel the same urges as he did?

Michaela was confused at his behaviour. _Why was he just standing there? Did he expect something from her?_ She gave him the once over, god, was he handsome in his casual, comfortable sweat pants, she supposed he preferred them to his tight jeans, since he was subject to frequent arousals. His t-shirt was tightly fitting him, showing his broad shoulders and taut chest. A shiver ran through her body, knowing what was under his clothes, and the pleasure he could give her, she felt her desire for him rising again.

And then it struck her. _He was waiting for her._ The look in his eyes spoke volumes, he was as much on fire as she was! This was going to be the inauguration of his bedroom with his new wife, he thought. Never had he invited any girl or woman here, Michaela was the first. And what a woman she had turned out to be! He already knew that she was beautiful, that feat he had noticed the first minute he had seen her. Then he had made her acquaintance, he had gotten to know her a bit better, the fantastic doctor she was, how her kindness and competence helped so many patients to heal, and now, married with her, he had discovered a passion so great that it would certainly last a lifetime...

He turned to her. She flew into his arms. Leaning her head back, she looked into his eyes and whispered: "Here, downstairs on the couch or upstairs in the bedroom?" He was more than pleased that she was longing for him just as much as he was longing for her. "Upstairs? As an inauguration of the bedroom?" he proposed, his voice slightly faltering with anticipation. "Inauguration?!" she exclaimed, "splendid idea!" She turned from his arms and ran up the stairs, as fast as her legs would carry her. He eagerly followed, relishing the view he had on her backside, hidden in her tight jeans, a sight that made him feel dizzy with desire. He was glad for his sweat pants, they were large and comfortable, leaving enough room for his bodily reaction.

In the bedroom, he walked over to the window to let in the summer breeze. Michaela turned around and again they flew into each other's arms. Tugging at their clothing, they were naked in no time, clashing their bodies together, their passionate kisses kindling the fire in their bodies. They stumbled to the bed, letting themselves drop on top of the cover. The summer breeze wafted through the open window, cooling them only partially, the heat radiating from them was turning their senses on to unbelievable heights. "I can't wait!" Sully panted in her ear. "Neither can I," she responded, equally on fire and not wishing for the preliminaries to take too long before she could give in to her longing to unite with him.

He looked at her, "Ready?" he whispered. She nodded and, even though he tried to be careful, he was so eager, that he almost forced his way in. She cringed at his vehemence, yet being highly excited herself, she did not utter a sound. Her legs instantly wrapped around him, allowing him to bury himself deep inside of her. His thrusts were strong and rapid, and, before she had time to reach her peak, Sully's came rushing onto him and, unable to hold back, he spilled inside of her, with the characteristic, very loud grunts. Panting and sweating, he took a few minutes to get back to normal, slightly ashamed of the animalistic way he had made love to her.

"I'm sorry," he whispered. "Why sorry?" Michaela wondered. "I went too fast, I was too eager, you didn't enjoy it, now did you?" he was truly embarrassed at his eagerness. "It was nice," she said, "don't feel sorry, we can take it slowly next time." They kissed and cuddled a few more moments. "Shall we take a shower? Together?" Michaela suggested hopefully. Showers with her gorgeous husband always ended up being a real feast. "Yeah, good idea," he agreed. They got up and headed for the bathroom. The warm water was lovely, they washed each other and feasted on the intense connection they enjoyed. Afterwards, they wrapped themselves in big towels to dry their bodies.


	24. Chapter 24

**Chapter 24** \- _An inauguration - 'Gold Nugget' - Colorado Springs_

_A/N: Things are heating up in this and the following chapters. I hope you don't mind. It just is difficult to write about M&S without mentioning the amazing attraction and chemistry between them, even though this story is set in 'modern times'..._

After the more than exciting interlude first in the bedroom and then in the shower, they dried each other and dressed up to finally go to _the Gold Nugget_ to fetch all Michaela's belongings, thus finalising her move into her husband's homestead. Sully managed to calm down his arousal, promising himself another fiery encounter with his luscious wife at the earliest occasion that would present itself to them, having seen the longing in her eyes when they were downstairs, he supposed her libido was equal, if not higher than his own. This, he thought, only augured well for the future. He remembered how some of his friends had sometimes complained that their spouses did not appreciate their longing for too many sessions of lovemaking. He suspected that with Michaela this problem might prove to be non-existent. Before getting in her car, he was proud that she handed him the keys once more. He could get used to driving such a powerful and posh car, he thought. Michaela enjoyed sitting in the passenger seat. Sully was a careful driver, he paid attention to all traffic, his driving style was much like her own, not too fast yet not too slow.

At_ the Gold Nugget_ they were greeted by Hank, who looked at them questioningly, since Michaela had announced a few days ago that she was going to move out of her room. "Hey!" he called out, "you're moving in with Sully?" They looked at Hank, then at each other. "Do we tell him?" Michaela asked. "Yeah, why not?" Sully responded. "Hank," Michaela began, "we have some news. Sully and I got married the day before yesterday."

Hank looked at Sully and sniggered. "You just sneaked off and got married? No celebration, no family, friends, nothing? Not much of a memory there then..." "Nope, but that's the way we wanted it, Hank, just the two of us and our friends Cloud Dancing and Snow Bird." "No preacher either?" Hank was surprised. "Nope, Cloud Dancing is authorised to perform marriage ceremonies." "Lucky guy, ain't you, Sully?" Sully just nodded, his arm around Michaela's shoulders, signalling to Hank that they now belonged together. Hank handed Michaela the key to her room. "Okay, sorry to see you go doc, but I can understand you wanna live with your new husband."

They mounted the stairs to fetch Michaela's things. In the room, Sully looked around. "I remember making that furniture and those carvings," he said. "Yes, Hank said so, the first day I arrived here, he told me that there was someone in Colorado Springs who could work wonders with wood," Michaela responded, "he also told me you did a splendid job renovating your homestead. Just think of it, Sully, I never dreamt, not in my wildest dreams, that that same homestead was going to be my home within a couple of months!"

Their eyes locked again and both felt the familiar fire beginning to burn all over again. "We never inaugurated this room..." Michaela whispered, "shall we do that now, now that we have a last chance at it?" "You mean... a _quickie?_" Sully chuckled, aware that he was again getting aroused and remembering having once read that term to designate a rather short intimate contact.

Michaela, not familiar with explicit sexually tinted language, reacted: _"A quickie?!_ What a perfect word! So yes, why not?" she giggled, and, looking down at his sweat pants, noticing the bump there, continuing: "you're ready, if I'm not mistaken...?" "How about you?" he whispered, unbuttoning her jeans and pushing his hand inside her panties to make sure it would not make her uncomfortable.

Michaela squirmed, this man excited her just by looking at her, good heavens, where would this lead them? To Sully's great satisfaction, the state of her centre proved to be as he expected, the encounter would go smoothly for them both. He got more and more excited at the prospect of having quick sex with her in this room. The idea that Hank was downstairs and might have an inkling of what they were up to, only added to his eagerness. He chuckled, remembering how Hank had tried on various occasions to push some woman onto him, but to Hank's dismay, he never had succeeded. Now he was here with this gorgeous woman, this fantastic lady doctor, Sully was sure that Hank was quite jealous of his conquest.

"Where shall we have our uhm... _quickie?_ The bed, the floor, the bathroom?" Michaela enquired, getting more and more turned on by her own temerity. "I prefer the bed," Sully admitted, "it's less of a strain on my knees." She giggled again and couldn't refrain from slipping her hand inside his sweat pants, caressing him. Sully felt his knees go weak, "'Chaela," he croaked, "you're gonna kill me one of these days!" He pushed her jeans and panties, both at the same time, down her legs and they stumbled onto the bed to start their amorous antics.

Downstairs, Hank heard the strange, yet familiar noises. He could hardly believe that these two were really having a go at each other in that room when all they came to do was getting Michaela's things? But then, what man could resist such a hell of a woman? He thought of the women who entertained him from time to time in _that_ way... They were not bad at all, but none of them had the class of this lady doctor, of that he was certain. Sure, his girls did many a thing that greatly pleased him, he was quite satisfied with his sex life, but still, having a woman look at him like this doc looked at Sully, was something Hank had never experienced. With a pang of jealousy he returned to the task of cleaning the counter and rinsing the glassware.

Upstairs, the newlyweds were completely absorbed in their _quickie_, which turned out to take longer than just the few minutes they had initially planned, since both had silently decided that they wanted to give the other more pleasure than just joining, reaching their peak and that would be it. "Sully," Michaela began, "I don't want just a _quickie_, I want the real thing, since this is the inauguration of this room..." Sully chuckled. "You're right, let's make this memorable. Quickies can wait, we'll have those later when we really don't have time. At the moment we got enough time, nobody's waiting for us and who cares about Hank?" "And the room is paid up until the end of the week," Michaela reminded him, "so even if we want to spend the night here, we could..." and with those words, she pulled her tank top over her head, displaying her lace-trimmed bra to him. He gulped, _my god, she really knows how to drive me mad with her forms..._ he thought. Reaching behind her, he undid the clasp, freeing her breasts to his sight, dropping her bra anywhere without worrying where it would fall to the floor.

She wanted him to touch and caress her, so she helped him shed his t-shirt and sweat pants, noticing that he had not cared to put on his boxers. The idea that he had been naked in his sweat pants all this time, thrilled her to no end. When he leaned his head towards her breast, to kiss her nipples, taking one after the other in his mouth and teasing it with his tongue, she thought she was going to melt in his arms. "Oh Sully," she moaned, "do you have any idea what you do to me?"

He looked up, and chuckling, he gave back: "I know, you do exactly the same to me and what is worse, I can't hide my reaction to the tricks you play on me. Believe me, that can get very uncomfortable." She laughed out loud, "You're too good to be true, Sully, let's get down to business, shall we?" And with those bold words, she pulled him close to her and they started their kissing and caressing, emitting grunts, moans and groans, not heeding the fact that they might be overheard by others in the hotel...

Downstairs, Hank interpreted the noises at face value, he shook his head at these two lovebirds who apparently were at it all the time, even when fetching a few things from a room, they seemingly couldn't keep their hands off each other. Hank knew that Sully was a virgin and from the way Michaela behaved with men, he was almost certain that she was too. So how come they already were so at ease with each other? Hank was well aware that Sully had lived for many years with the Cheyenne, could it be that they had taught him some things there? Hank did not expect Sully to have had any sexual experiences with Cheyenne girls, because he knew the Cheyenne never mixed with whites, they were a very proud people and any Cheyenne man or woman who had the misfortune to fall in love with a white person, was not really expelled from the tribe, but they did not like it either.

He dressed his ears. Did he hear her laughing? He wished he were a fly on the wall in that room, he was sure the lovemaking of those two must be something spectacular, both being so well-built, almost athletic... With a deep, melancholic sigh, he finished rinsing the glassware. When those two would finally be finished with their amorous intermezzo, they would certainly be thirsty. He remembered that Sully hardly ever drank something strong, did he once see him drink a beer? Hank couldn't remember clearly. He came in sometimes with that friend of his, what was his name? Daniel something, yes, that's it, Daniel Simon.

They played pool together, Sully was quite good at it, won often of other guys too, but as far as drinks were concerned, Sully most of the time only drank water. And the lady doc? Hank couldn't remember having seen her drink anything else but tea, coffee or just plain water too, like Sully. She didn't even drink lemonades or soft drinks. Amazing woman, he thought, very sure of herself, quite spirited, one would even say feisty, she must be quite a handful in bed, some hidden force of nature... But then, he chuckled at the thought, Sully was a real hunk, a masterpiece of nature... Hank had never been sexually interested in other men, but he did clearly see that most women would find Sully devastatingly handsome. Well-built, strong and, strange enough, painfully shy. Someone had once said he'd been on a few dates, but Hank had never seen him with a girl or a woman, so this lady doctor really had to be very special to have caught the heart of this solitary guy...

Upstairs, the last-minute inauguration of the room was playing out at full force, things were still heating up, the newlyweds were revelling in their love for each other, enjoying caresses and touches on all parts of their bodies. Sully was getting more and more worked up, Michaela's caresses were slowly but surely driving him to a point where joining with her would become crucial if he did not want to completely lose control, prematurely ending the fun.

Fleetingly he wondered at his stamina... Before Michaela, whenever he would think of making love with a woman, he thought it would be nice but nothing more than that. Now, after a few days with Michaela, he had to admit that the notion of making love had taken on a totally different dimension, nothing what he had ever imagined, compared to the real thing.

Michaela noticed that he was nearing his pinnacle, so she pushed Sully on his back. She straddled his abdomen and, touching down, she guided him inside of her. The expression on his face told her how much he was enjoying this. She moved slowly, this felt so good, it was a completely different sensation from the ones she experienced when Sully was on top and, when she heard him moan and saw him close his eyes, she increased the rhythm.

He moved his hand down to her centre and started to massage her there, while his other hand grasped her breast, teasing her hardened nipple between his finger and thumb. Michaela's mind had switched off. She functioned by pure instinct now, and it was... paradise. Thanks to his expert massage, she came over the edge, a loud screech escaped her throat, causing Sully to almost lose control. When on top of that he felt her inner contractions, so strong and commanding, he could no longer hold back, he let go and with a few more strong thrusts upwards to meet her movements, he spilled inside of her, his body shuddering violently, his voice uttering several loud, low grunts: _"Arrrggghhh...! Arrrggghhh...! Arrrggghhh...!"_

Downstairs, Hank heard the noises travelling from Michaela's room to the bar downstairs, and, imagining them tangled up with and in each other, recognising all these noises at their exact meaning, he felt himself stirring with lust. He regretted that none of his lady friends was readily available at short notice, because he wouldn't mind having a good sex romp himself right now, the fact of being confronted with such a horny couple upstairs was inevitably turning him on as well...

Panting and sweating, Sully and Michaela tried to gain some composure. A nice warm shower wouldn't be a luxury, Michaela thought. After a few moments, as if he could read her mind, Sully suggested: "Shall we have a wash-down?" "Mmm, that would be lovely," she agreed, "but not yet. Let's just snuggle and cuddle a bit more." She relished their closeness, it felt so heavenly, all the loneliness she had felt for so many years had, as by miracle, completely vanished. Sully was her home, her everything, her world.

They snuggled into one another, she looked up and they started kissing each other, their tongues dancing a dance of endless love. Michaela thought back to the boys she had dated, it seemed so long ago now, as if it had occurred in another life. Inwardly, she giggled at the weirdness she had felt at the time and now, with Sully, she had been doing things from which she would previously have shied away, judging them distasteful or even disgusting. Thinking of Sully, she knew there were no limits to what she would be prepared to do with him. She knew of some very explicit books wherein the most outrageous sexual positions were described, even illustrated, she was adamant that as soon as she could, she was going to procure these books somewhere. She felt shivers of excitement travel through her body at the idea of trying out all these positions with him.

Hank was serving a few customers some drinks when he recognised from the sounds he heard, that the shower had been turned on upstairs. He sighed. Of course, they had been so busy with each other, they now needed to clean themselves up a bit, before confronting the world outside again. In a way he was glad for Sully. The guy had always made such a sad impression on Hank, even when Sully was making the furniture and renovating his homestead, he had never struck Hank as being a very happy or contented guy. The lady doc was another sad case. Seems she had lost her father recently, a fact Hank had heard from the other hospital employees who were in the habit of frequenting his pool room.

But when he saw Michaela and Sully stepping into _the Gold Nugget_ this morning, he had seen the happiness radiating from their faces. Hank chuckled, from the way they looked at each other it was more than obvious that they were head over heels in love... So now they were having a shower together. Hank sighed again, next time he had one of his lady friends over who would be willing to entertain him sexually, he was going to propose they shower together, should be a sexy thing to do, he thought, already looking forward to such an event...

Without noticing it, Sully and Michaela dozed off. Wrapped tightly in Sully's arms, Michaela felt completely at peace. Yet her dream was not so pleasant. She was in Boston, confronting her mother who said all sorts of unkind things about Sully. Her other sisters, except Rebecca, joined Elizabeth Quinn's enumeration of Sully's shortcomings, no education, no famous family background, not a penny to his name, and, according to her mother and sisters, certainly incapable of providing Michaela with the way of life she was used to and destined for. Michaela awoke with a start, realising that she had to pay her mother and sisters a visit within the shortest delays, hence these dreams would start to live a life of their own, turning into a nightmare. She decided to propose to Sully to start immediately on Wednesday to try and synchronise their hourly shifts, to allow for them to make the trip to Boston together.

Just then, Sully too opened his eyes. He immediately felt that Michaela was fretting about something. "What're ya frettin' about?" he asked her softly. "How do you know I'm fretting about something?" she couldn't help but respond. "I feel it," he said, "deep inside of me there is a feeling of worry. A feeling that does not come from me, but from the outside, from you." Amazed at this special connection he had with her, she told him of her dream. "Guess we'll have to organise this soon then," he agreed. "How about that shower now?" she wondered. "Yep, com'on, let's have some more fun," he laughed at her.

Like all their previous showers together, this one too, was a success. They washed, touched, kissed and caressed each other, revelling in all the heavenly sensations they were able to provoke from each other. Drying off, they got dressed, all the while kissing and hugging, their attraction too strong to refrain from touching and caressing. Michaela took her suitcases out of the closet to begin stuffing all her belongings in them. Sully, pulling open a drawer of the chest which he remembered having made and carved quite a few years ago, almost melted at the sight of Michaela's underwear. Neatly stacked in the drawer, her femininity hit his senses, waves of love for her washed over him, he hesitated to lay hands on these intimate items.

Michaela, noticing his hesitation, walked over to him and looked into the drawer. "What is it, Sully?" she asked. "I... uhm... this is so private, so delicate, they're all your undies, I feel almost scared to touch them..." he murmured, slightly blushing. She was awed at his consideration, but could understand it. They had been married just a few days, they still lacked the ease with which long time couples could converse. To help him out, she reached into the drawer, taking out all her undergarments. Walking over to the suitcase on the bed, she stuffed them inside.

After that came her clothes, jeans, dresses, blouses and tops, and for her shoes she had a special bag in which all her shoes could be packed. For her toiletries in the bathroom she had a special bag as well, and the other items easily fit into a second suitcase. She looked around. "That's it, Sully," she stated. "Room's empty, properly inaugurated on a last-minute occasion, so now we can go home." "Home," Sully said dreamily, and, looking at her, he whispered: "I still can't believe we're married, but I know we are." "Yes, we are," she replied, "for the rest of our lives, I hope..." "Sure," was the only thing he said, unable to speak when he let the meaning of those words sink in.

He carried the two suitcases down. Hank looked up and smiled at them. God, they did look happy, he mused. Well, who wouldn't? He was sure they had just had a more than spectacular lovemaking session in the room upstairs, a lovely shower together afterwards, so who wouldn't be radiant after such delightful events? "All set to go? Wanna drink something?" he asked. "Yep, some water would be perfect," Sully replied. Hank pulled out a bottle of sparkling mineral water and two glasses. "Guess you guys need this," he chuckled. The newlyweds looked at each other, realising that Hank had overheard them. They both blushed, much to Hank's amusement. "Don't worry, it's great to have fun that way," Hank soothed. They picked up their glasses and drank the bubbly liquid.

Afterwards, Michaela walked over to Hank and stretched out her hand. "Hank, thank you for putting up with me for all these months, the room was fine, I will regret my daily walks to and from the hospital, it really was very convenient. Sully's homestead is quite far away, from now on, I will have to drive to go to work. I hope we'll get to see each other often in the future." "Might see each other at Grace's," Hank said, "I go there sometimes for lunch or dinner, when there are not too many customers here, I just close for a while to get myself some proper food. Anyway, it was nice having you here, and I wish you both all the happiness in the world. You're a lucky guy, Sully, this lady doc sure is something special..." "She sure is," Sully acknowledged, smiling lovingly at his wife, even slightly blushing because he couldn't help thinking of all the pleasure she had showered him with since they were married, whereby their lovemaking, from what he had gathered from his friends, was exceptional. Michaela too blushed, she never liked being the centre of attention, especially not when such compliments were being addressed at her.


	25. Chapter 25

**Chapter 25** \- _A celebration - Sully's Homestead - Colorado Springs_

The homestead was bathing in the evening sun. Michaela again admired the beauty of the wooden structure and made a mental note to ask Sully if he knew some more details of the ancestor who had built it back in the 19th century. Getting out of her car, Sully carried the two suitcases into the house, wondering what they were going to do about food? He had some food in the house, if he remembered well, there were some pizzas in the freezer, but maybe she wanted something more fancy? "D'you wanna go out for dinner or shall we make something here at home?" he asked her. "I don't care so much, what do you want?" she wondered, leaving it up to him where and how they would have their next meal. "I have some pizzas in the freezer which I can put in the oven if you like?" "Fine with me, pizza it will be!" Walking over to the kitchen, he switched on the oven and went down to the cellar to fetch the frozen pizzas. Michaela looked around. This house was so inviting, she felt as if she had already lived in it for a long time instead of just moving in today.

Sully surfaced with the pizzas and went to the kitchen to unpack them before heating them up. She followed him and leaned against the doorjamb, looking at him. "Sully," she began, "we never talked a lot about it, but I think you should know that I'm a hopeless cook." He smiled, "I'm not, so I s'pose I'll do most of the cooking. Your job is anyway far more demanding than mine, that will compensate some of it." He walked over to her and took her in his arms. Tenderly he whispered in her ear: "'Chaela, I can't tell you often enough how happy I am, you mean the world to me, but sometimes I'm scared I will not be able to live up to your expectations."

She looked up at him and smiled. "You will, Sully, I have the fullest confidence in our future. Snow Bird said we must communicate, tell each other what we like and what we do not like, she said communication was one very important aspect of a good marriage." Sully chuckled. "Cloud Dancing said the same to me, guess we'll have to try and make it work. So far we have..." He leaned in and kissed her. Almost immediately the kiss deepened, his tongue sought hers, in no time they were lost in their lovers' world. Each time, the instantly soaring passion surprised them, it was as if the rest of the world disappeared from their view, leaving only the two of them and their instincts to be of any importance.

Sully chuckled at himself. A deep kiss was already enough to set him on fire, he was glad to have his sweat pants on, they were nice and wide, his arousal could go any old way it liked... Michaela felt his stiffness on her thigh, was this man never getting tired of making love? She was certainly going to investigate a bit further into the male libido, what was happening to her here with Sully, seemed so extraordinary that she wanted to know more about it. Before knowing Sully, thinking of intimacy had been something she had done off as a mere duty to be performed by the wife to give the man pleasure, almost like in the 19th century. Sure, she had heard that women also could have orgasms, but then again, it seemed that it happened frequently that women faked it...

Her friends had not been very explicit on this point, some had said it was nice, others had said it was hilarious and only a few had said it was awesome. So Michaela had decided she would stop wondering about it, the more so because up until then, no boy or man had ever been able to capture her attention for more than a few hours. That was until she met Sully. He had continuously been on her mind, since the first moment she had laid eyes on him, she had distinctly felt she had recognised him, even though that was absolutely impossible. She wondered if it were possible to recognise the future? Sometimes people say _it is written in the stars..._ Was it written in the stars that she and Sully would end up married? Had she recognised that? But then Sully too had admitted that he had felt something like that, she mused. It was amazing...

She remembered how lost she had felt when she started noticing that he avoided her. It confused her, it even hurt, why would he do that? Luckily Daniel had come to their rescue, after their talk and their first kiss in the park, they had easily found their way together, to end up married, madly in love and confident that the future would only hold happiness in store for them. While all these thoughts swirled through her mind, their kissing had gone on and on, Sully was moaning and tugging at her t-shirt, he needed to feel her, god, she was turning him on with her fiery kisses, his skin was radiating with the heat he was feeling inside of him.

He broke the kiss, leaned back and pulled his t-shirt over his head. "I'm on fire again," he murmured in her ear, "it's getting too hot in here, this is getting ridiculous." "Not ridiculous," she managed to say, "we're just too much in love to be able to stop fingering each other." And with those words, she pulled off her t-shirt and undressed herself. Reaching at her back, she undid the clasp of her bra, throwing the discarded garments carelessly onto an empty chair in the kitchen. Standing in his sweat pants, she reached down and caressed him. He groaned at her touch, he wanted to feel her too, so he undid the button on her jeans, moving his hand inside of her panties, touching her centre. He felt her wetness, my god, this woman, the love of his life, was always ready to make love...

The beep of the oven pulled them from their daze. Sully walked over to the sink and washed his hands, after all he had been toying with her genitals... Michaela noticed his concern for hygiene, not surprising, she thought, working in a hospital inculcates us with the need for cleanliness. Walking to the sink, she also gave her hands a good wash. Sully went to the oven and removed the pizzas, placing them on the table and cutting them into small pieces, ready for finger-eating. "Let's eat in the nude," Michaela proposed.

Sully's eyes almost popped out of his head, his heart skipped a beat... Would paradise never come to an end? he wondered. "In-in... the nude?" he managed to utter, his voice almost failing him. "Yes, why not? We're all alone and I love it when we're both naked. It's warm enough, you don't mind?" "Mind?!" he called out, "'Chaela, you're every man's dream! Just so you know, I'm very, very jealous. Don't ever let your eyes wander onto any other man!" "Or woman for that sake, for you," she warned him, "I'm just as jealous as you are!"

He shed his sweat pants, and she, in turn, shed her jeans and panties. Feasting their eyes upon each other, they walked over to the couch in the living room, where they could eat their pizzas. She picked up the plate with the pieces and headed for the couch, where Sully had already sat down, opening his legs. He motioned for Michaela to sit in between them, but before doing so, she couldn't help but admire his gorgeous body. How on earth had she gotten so lucky to conquer the heart of this handsome man? Placing the plate with the food on the low table in front of the couch, she sat down. She felt his arousal against her lower back, it excited her to know that after finishing the pizza, they would certainly have another intimate interlude. Good grief, married life was really completely different from what she had ever expected it to be...

Feeding each other little bites of the tasteful pizza, they were overwhelmed by the happiness they felt. "Ya know," Sully started, "before knowin' you, I hardly ever was here at home. Very often I even stayed in the hospital, because in the evening, after work, I would go and visit those children who have little or no visitors." "I know," she answered, "Charlotte told me about that. I remember thinking that it was one of the most beautiful, sweetest things I had heard in a long time." "I hated to come home to this empty homestead, but now, with you by my side, I love to be here." He paused, carefully choosing his next words...

"Michaela, I'm so very, very happy with you, I can't put it into words. That dreadful loneliness I've been feelin' for years, disappeared the moment we kissed, in the park. Cloud Dancin' was right, you are my _soul mate_. The Cheyenne have another beautiful word for the love of your life, you are my _Heartsong_, Michaela." "What a wonderful word," she whispered, "how do you say that in Cheyenne? Do you know that?" "Of course, it is _hesta-noo'otse_," Sully replied. "Are you going to call me that now?" she asked. "Would ya like me to?" he said, surprised that she would like to be called by a Cheyenne word. "I'd love it." "Well then, _hesta-noo'otse_, what would you like to drink?" "Do you have anything with which we can celebrate our first night in your homestead?" "You mean like _Champagne_ or something like that? And by the way, it is not my homestead anymore, it is _our_ homestead now," he remarked, silently congratulating himself on having anticipated the need for a frivolous drink to toast with. "Yes, but if you don't have any, it doesn't matter," she conceded, aware that she was asking for something he might not have thought of. "Well, I think I do have something that will help us make your moving into our house a most memorable event," he said, getting up and walking over to the refrigerator.


	26. Chapter 26

**Chapter 26** \- _A celebration - Sully's Homestead - Colorado Springs_

To her surprise, he came back with... a bottle of Champagne and two special glasses, called _flutes_. "I don't know how to open this," Sully said sheepishly, "never had to do that in my life." "Give it to me," Michaela offered, "I've done it more than once, don't worry." And with those words, she expertly set to work to let the Champagne cork pop out with a loud plop, ending up at the other end of the living room. Michaela immediately poured the sparkling liquid in the flutes, laughing at Sully who had jumped at the plop of the cork and was now watching the procedure of filling the flutes, mesmerised by her knowledge and expertise, but also realising with a pang of sadness that she came from a world, completely different from his own.

He felt his insecurities rise in his mind again, was he going to be able to make their marriage work? She was so much more educated than he was, she was so much wealthier, used to luxuries that he had never had and, not having had them, had not missed. Would Michaela be satisfied with his modest way of living? There were still so many points they would have to discuss, her fortune was one of them. He pushed these thoughts aside, for the time being, they were going to celebrate Michaela's moving in with him, as his lawful, wedded, beloved wife...

Picking up the flute, she raised it and said: "To us Sully, may our union be for all eternity, blessed with one or more children and lots of happiness. May our skies always be blue, as blue as your eyes, the occasional cloud quickly passing by, may our days be filled with endless joy, and may our love life continue to be as fabulous as it has been so far. I love you, Mr Sully, but those three words do by far not cover the load."

Sully was speechless at his wife's heartfelt declaration of love. He picked up his glass and, clearing his throat, he looked into her eyes. "To us, Michaela, love of my life, you have my heart for the rest of my days. I will always cherish the minute you stepped into my life to make me one of the happiest and luckiest men on the planet."

They sipped their Champagne. "Mmm, this is nice," Michaela remarked, "nicer than what I remember from drinking this many years ago." "I asked for a Champagne that would please a lady," Sully chuckled, "so they recommended this one. Never knew that there were all sorts of Champagne," he honestly confessed, "I always thought there was just the one kind, but apparently that's not the case." "Yes, it seems there's dry and less dry, something they call _brut_, but don't ask me any further details, I wouldn't be able to tell what exactly the difference is. Must have something to do with the way in which this wine is made." Taking another sip, she felt the cool liquid descending to her stomach. It was really nice, so she took another sip, and another... and another...

Sully was amused to watch how eagerly she was downing the alcoholic beverage. At this rate, she risked getting tipsy, he thought. He wondered what a slightly drunk Michaela Quinn would be like. With the fire that she already had in her without any alcoholic drink, it might well be that she was going to be even more of a _volcano_. He laughed inwardly, let the show begin, he thought, this promises lots of enjoyment for the rest of the evening and certainly also the night to come. He took some swigs of his flute, gulping the sparkling liquid down, feeling happy and relaxed that all had gone so well.

He placed his flute back on the table, reflecting that, apart from all this happiness, a few worries remained, one of which was the impending visit to Michaela's family in Boston. And then of course there was the issue of how they were going to manage their respective finances. Apart from his homestead and the many acres of land surrounding it, Sully did not have any personal fortune. His job in the hospital paid well enough, but over the years he had used most of his earnings to renovate his homestead.

On the other hand, he was aware that the value of his homestead and the land around it, was considerable, but he would never ever sell it if he could avoid it. It had been in his family for generations, and he was determined to keep it that way. His son, if he was lucky enough to ever have one, would inherit this from him, with the explicit request to perpetuate the tradition of this being the _Sully_ homestead. _My son_, Sully mused, _my son with Michaela, the woman who now owns my heart and will own it until the day I die, is there anything more wonderful than that, can my life get any better than this...?_

Placing her flute back on the table, having emptied it completely, it didn't take long for Michaela to begin to feel the effect of the Champagne. She felt as light as air, and the vision of her naked husband was one to speed up her heartbeat, and let her blood race through her veins. Shivers of excitement shook her, and of course, the oh so familiar pulsing and throbbing inside of her, had started again. She looked at Sully and unconsciously her eyes travelled down on his body. He was at rest now, she mused that, compared to her male patients who she had happened to see for some treatment or other, he was rather well endowed...

Sully followed her glance. The fact that she was looking at his body with so much love in her eyes, made him react immediately. Michaela was amazed to witness his reaction to her admiring stares. She looked up at him and they burst out in fits of laughter. "Oh Sully!" she exclaimed, "I think we're crazy!" and with those words, she threw herself in his arms. Being skin-to-skin was something they would never tire of, he loved her silky, smooth, creamy-white skin, he loved burying his head in her neck, kissing her breasts, teasing her nipples and, further down, touching and caressing her centre, his harbour of love, his home, from where, if they were lucky, their children would enter this world...

Michaela was ready to make love again, and so was Sully. She pushed any thought of questioning their normalcy aside, this was not the moment to worry about that, this was a moment to be taken for what it was: marital bliss at its best. She gently moved her body over his, making him moan with pleasure. Proud that she was having such an effect on him, she reached down and began to caress him. "Don't you think we'll be more comfortable upstairs, on our bed?" he asked her.

She looked up, agreeing that the couch was not the most comfortable place to move around, there was a lot more room on the bed for them to indulge in changing positions, giving and taking pleasure from each other. "You're right, Mr Sully," she giggled, "we'll have a lot more fun upstairs..." Getting up, they tried to walk leisurely up the stairs, but with the passion coursing through them, they couldn't help but take a run, this time Sully was not feasting his eyes on her jeans, but on her naked bottom. My God, this was almost getting too much, he nearly suffocated with desire.

Michaela let herself drop down on top of the bed, stretching her arms toward him, hardly able to wait to feel him against her. Whenever they were apart, she longed for him. She vaguely wondered how this was going to work out once they would have to go their separate ways in their respective jobs, working in different departments of the hospital... She would not see him for many hours on end, could it be that he too was not looking forward to that? Would they find some time to steal some private moments in which they could indulge and have a quick encounter? So far, they had never managed to have what Sully called a _quickie,_ even at _the Gold Nugget_ they had taken their time for the wonderful amorous interlude they had ventured upon to finally and _in extremis_ inaugurate her room at that establishment. Maybe once at work, they would both be able to think of other things than making love at any moment of the day.

Michaela sighed, a prolonged honeymoon would have suited her better, but as it was, these three days alone with Sully was all they could get. In her office in the hospital, there was a couch. She could lock the door from the inside and have this famous _quickie_ with him on the couch... She blushed at her boldness, amazed at the changes that had come over her since she had met the love of her life, this very special man, who was now her husband...

Seeing his wife stretched out on the bed in all her glory, Sully couldn't help but throw himself on her, forgetting about his weight which might make her feel uncomfortable. Michaela didn't mind, it was devastatingly exciting to hold him, to be so close to him, she sensed his excitement, his rigid state did not escape her awareness, she was more and more turned on by this phenomenon of which she knew to be the main cause. He sat up and moved down to her breasts, taking first one and then the other nipple in his mouth, teasing them, proud to feel them hardening immediately upon the touch of his tongue.

Michaela sighed, this was sheer bliss, she knew she would never get enough of him. Leaving her breasts, Sully moved his hand down to her centre to begin his stimulating ministrations. Excited as she was, it didn't take long for her to reach her peak. Sully noticed it and, when he felt the first contractions of her inner muscles, he entered her, doing his best not to force too much. She was in heaven, her body responded so well to him, her peaks were getting better and better, and the contractions were also getting more and more intense and increased in number.

Feeling her inner muscles squeeze his manhood, Sully nearly lost it. The urge to move inside of her was getting stronger and stronger. His thrusts were slow at first, but very soon he quickened the pace, still trying to hold back his own release, knowing that the only way to achieve that, was by either thinking or talking of something else, pushing aside all thoughts of how good it felt to be joined to his adorable, passionate wife.

With utmost willpower, he stilled his movements and looked into her eyes. "You enjoying this?" he whispered, not sure how long he would last this time. "Mm-mm, very much," she murmured back, "you want to calm down, right? To make it last longer?" "Yep," he admitted, "this is so marvellous, I don't want it to be over too soon. I'm already calming down, I might manage to make this the longest encounter we've had so far." "I love being with you like this, Sully, it's more than what I ever expected of married life. My friends said it even gets better with time. Do you think it will get better for us too? I can't imagine anything better than this." "Could be that when we know each other real well, our love life also changes, maybe that is what your friends meant, that the understanding of each other's wishes and desires improves so much that you would hardly need any words to let the other know what you want."

Michaela pondered his words. "But we already have that, you have often read my mind, and when we look at each other, we know what we want, no need for words." "True," he said, resuming his slow movements, bringing her the pleasure she always felt when she was united with her beloved husband.

The rest of that evening and the night, were memorable. Michaela didn't know if it was the influence of the Champagne, but each time they came together, it seemed to get better. Where it would end, was written in the stars... At one point, in the early morning when dawn was just breaking, spreading a soft light into their room while they were still asleep, Sully woke up to a sensation hitherto unknown. He was aroused again, but there was no dream to cause it, so much he knew. He analysed what was happening. And then he felt it. Even after numerous times of making love, his body was again reacting and all of a sudden, still half asleep, he also knew why. His passionate wife, probably also still half asleep, was caressing his lower part, which, true to his actual state of excellent health and being so madly in love with her, responded instantly to her touch.

To be woken up in this way, was something he had never experienced nor ever thought possible. None of his friends had, at one time or the other, given any hint that their spouses or partners would be so bold as to initiate intimacy so early in the morning. It was again heaven, he thought, amazed that Michaela had apparently shed all her inhibitions and restrictions inculcated into her virginal mind over the years. She was totally free, even her initial bashfulness at being completely naked in front of him, had vanished like snow in the sun. She moved around just as freely as he did, causing him to love her more and more.

"Michaela," he whispered softly, "are you sure you want to make love again? Aren't you getting sore down there?" Reaching down, he probed her centre. How could he have doubted it? She was not just moist, but downright wet. The word _volcano_ came to his mind. "Sore?" she enquired, surprised that indeed one might get sore in intimate places because of the high frequency of their encounters. "No, I'm not sore at all, but I am excited all the time, I want to make love all the time, so much that it even worries me."

Sully didn't answer, the fact that she was always ready to make love with him, was more than exciting and, slowly entering her, he began his movements. Wanting to make it last, he did not speed up the pace. Their movements synchronised in one harmonious dance of love, as old as times, a joy to be lived by lovers intent on the other's pleasure. Michaela moved her hand down to this centre, taking his scrotum in her hand, gently caressing it. Feeling what she was doing to him, Sully let out a loud groan, calling out: _"'Chaela! This is heaven!"_ Michaela giggled, proud that he enjoyed it as much as she did. She felt his movements inside of her, her body was glowing, her heartbeat once more reached unbelievable speeds. Her peak was almost there, she wondered if Sully would come over the edge at the same time, or if he was going to delay his release. "I'm almost there, Sully, let go if you want," she managed to warn him.

A few seconds later, she could not hold back her loud squeal of pleasure as her orgasm hit her full force. Hearing and feeling her coming over the edge, was Sully's undoing. He lost all control of himself and with his now characteristic cry-out of several loud _Arrrggghhh's_, he reached his peak too. His body convulsed violently, and, having dropped his head beside hers on the pillow, once they had regained some composure, he stammered in her ear: "It's getting better and better." "Indeed it is," she convened, "do you have any idea where this ends?" "None whatsoever," he chuckled, "but if this is what our love life together is going to be like, it's fine with me. I don't ask for more." "Neither do I," she responded.

Another thought struck him. "Michaela, we only know each other intimately. Do you think we'll ever get curious to know what making love with someone else is like? What are we going to do if that kind of curiosity gets hold of us?" Michaela was speechless. The idea of making love with another man was so abhorrent and strange to her, that she was sure she would never be a victim of that sort of curiosity. At the same time, she knew men were different. They were easier aroused, less faithful because more driven by their instincts and natural urges, so the risk that her stunningly handsome husband would fall for another woman, was far from imaginary. Even without it being the case at that very moment, she felt a violent pang of jealousy course through her mind.

Michaela knew she needed to react to his remark. "Sully, I do not think I would ever be interested in any other man but you. The few dates I went on, were a disaster. What I feel for you, is something I have never felt for any man, so the risk that I would ever cheat on you, is non-existent as far as I am concerned. But for you, as a man, I know it will be different. Men are less faithful than women, I see it happen around me all the time. Just look at Dr Clifford, the nerve he had to tell me that he would have liked dating me, even though he is married and has children."

Sully was speechless. _"He did what?!"_ Disgust washed over him at the mere thought that this man, so much older than Michaela, would let himself fall in love with her and even go as far as to try and take her out. "He'd better not try anything again, he is in for some real trouble," Sully warned, continuing: "he hasn't got a clue what I do when provoked." "Sully, no! Please do not interfere in this matter, I am fully capable of handling this myself. Promise me you'll never do anything before discussing it with me, please, Sully?" she implored. He grunted, "Okay, but you'll tell me if anything happens, do you promise me that?" "Yes, I will," considering the subject closed for the time being.


	27. Chapter 27

**Chapter 27** \- _Back to work - St Catherine's Hospital - Colorado Springs _

Inevitably the day that they would have to be back at work, arrived. Sully woke up in the morning, after their nightly and early morning activities, he wouldn't have minded sleeping in a little bit more, but they both had to start their shifts at nine. Looking at the alarm clock, he saw that it was early enough for them to take a quick shower and have some breakfast. Looking at his sleeping wife, feelings of intense happiness filled him, never had he expected to find a _soul mate_ so perfectly matched to him, he knew he would do all in his power to make her happy, to love her for the rest of his life. He wondered what the future would bring them, would they ever be tempted to stray and sidestep with other lovers? Or would they stick to each other and refuse to have any sexual experiences with someone else but themselves? He knew that some of his friends did not refrain from cheating on their wives or partners, would he, after some time, also be tempted to do that?

As all these thoughts tumbled through his mind, he thought of Dr Clifford. He made a mental note that he was going to watch the guy sharply but discreetly, if ever he dared lay his filthy hands on his wife, Sully was not sure he could vouch for himself not to act upon it. Growing up, he had gotten into numerous scrapes, breaking his nose at a few occasions, one of his fingers, and more such small injuries. All because his classmates had sneered at him, he was an orphan, living with Indians, that alone made him suspect in their eyes. Luckily there was Daniel, who, taller than he was, got him out of trouble whenever things risked to turn real nasty. It didn't help any that his school results were not too brilliant either, another reason why his classmates did not hold him in high esteem.

"D'you think we'll finish work at the same time today?" he asked Michaela when she came down to the kitchen. "You mean so that we can drive to the hospital and back home together, with just one car?" "Yeah, I'd like that very much," he responded, handing her a plate with freshly fried bacon and eggs. After having had a lovely shower together, he had gone down first, leaving her to prepare for work. He had made breakfast, toast and hot coffee were awaiting her as well. She sighed. He was just too good to be true, she had never heard from any of her married friends that their husbands ever made breakfast for them...

"If you're not ready to go home when I have finished my shift, I can wait for you in the children's ward," Sully suggested, "there are always children who rarely or even never get any visitors, so I go and tell them some Cheyenne fairy tales. I loved listening to Cloud Dancing when I lived there. Daniel too, he also speaks fluently Cheyenne, I was lucky to end up there, and have Daniel with me for so many years." "I only had one close friend in school," Michaela responded. "Miriam helped me a lot, I was so much younger than my classmates and not being very tall, the difference was very obvious. So they called me _the baby_ and did all they could to make my life miserable. But Miriam was fantastic, she told them off in such a way, that they stopped harassing me and just tolerated me." "Is Miriam a doctor too?" Sully asked her, curious to hear some more about her younger years. "Yes, she graduated together with me, but then she married and her husband, also a doctor, insisted she remain home with their children." "That why you made me promise never to ask you to stop doctoring?" "Yes," Michaela confessed, "that, and the one boy I once dated who told me to forget doctoring and become a homemaker for him..."

Sully stood up, walked over to her and stood behind her chair. Leaning over to embrace her, kissing the top of her head, he murmured: "I will never ask that of you, in the worst case, I would even cut down on my own working hours, take a half day job for example, and take care of our children myself. I would prefer that than hiring nannies." "Would you really be prepared to do that?" she asked, incredulous of so much self-sacrifice. "Yep," he said, "I would." He knelt down beside her chair, and, looking up at her, he softly spoke: "There is nothing I wouldn't do for you, Michaela. We will make it work, one way or the other, trust me." "I trust you Sully, I love you so much," she said, looking at him with all the love she felt for him clearly reflected in her eyes.

And so they prepared to leave for work. Instead of giving Sully her own car key, she had dug out the spare key she had in her suitcase, saying: "Here is the second key to my car. Take it, so that I don't have to give you mine all the time. And for driving out to work, you drive, so I can sit and enjoy the view." She did not specify which view, and she knew, she would greatly enjoy watching her handsome husband as they drove to the hospital together.

Morning traffic was quite heavy, but they made it just in time to get there a little before 9 o'clock. Daniel and Charlotte, who had been waiting for them in the Central Hall, walked over to them, both saying quietly: "Congratulations!" "Thank you," Michaela and Sully responded. "How did it all go?" Daniel wanted to know, since he also knew that Sully had never been intimate with a woman. Sully looked at him: "Great." "How great?" Daniel insisted. "Real great," Sully countered, having no intention whatsoever to reveal to anybody how their first time together had unfolded, what he and his new wife had been up to subsequently, experiencing the absolute paradise that had opened up to them.

Yet Daniel, from the look on Sully's face, had gathered that all had gone well, not to say very well. Michaela and Charlotte, in the meantime, had also had a little private conversation. Michaela had assured Charlotte that her discovery of marital life had been more than positive. "I'm so glad to hear that," Charlotte had said, "there is nothing more important in a marriage than getting along well in all aspects of life."

One of the first things Michaela went about, was to figure out how to get her own and Sully's working and free hours to coincide, so that they could fly out to Boston, for the much dreaded visit to her family. With her two-week schedule in hand, she headed out to Sully's office to see what his hours were going to be.

Sully was sitting at his desk, a computer monitor in spare parts spread out in front of him, probably trying to figure out what was wrong with it and if it could be repaired. He looked up, and seeing his beloved wife entering his office, his face lit up in a broad grin, waves of happiness washed over him and he got up to take her in his arms. How good did it feel to hold each other, they thought. Their lips met for a soft kiss, and, breaking it, they locked eyes. The attraction was too strong and, not minding Daniel who was in a corner taking care of some other, heavier equipment on a trolley, they kissed again, but this time deepening the kiss, letting their tongues dance with each other, revelling in the sensations they provoked in their respective bodies.

Watching his friend and his lovely wife kissing passionately to the point of getting completely lost in each other, Daniel chuckled and wondered if he would ever be so lucky to find his own _soul mate_. That these two were true _soul mates_, was obvious. Rarely had he seen two people so deeply in love with each other, once they were together, it seemed as if they entered a universe only visible to them, invisible for the rest of the world. They forgot all that was around them, as if the outside world had vanished. This, Daniel thought, is something very special. He remembered how Sully as well as Michaela had behaved when they first met, how Sully was reduced to a stammering fool, scared to be near her. He felt proud that he had pushed his friend in the right direction, into the arms of this amazing woman, loved by all her colleagues and adored by her patients.

Pulling themselves back to reality, Michaela and Sully smiled at each other. "What'd'ya come here for?" Sully enquired. Michaela held up her two-week schedule, "I'm trying to figure out when we can have a few days to fly out to Boston," she announced. "Okay, let's have a look," and, taking her schedule, he walked over to Daniel, explaining what they needed to sort out. Comparing their schedules, Daniel pointed out that, by swapping a few shifts with him, it would be possible to let Michaela and Sully have four days for their Boston trip on August 10, 11, 12 and 13.

"You gonna get grilled by your in-laws?" Daniel teased Sully. "'Specially her mom seems to be quite a character," Sully answered, continuing: "but we'll manage, I'll help her get through the thunderstorm." "Is it that bad?" Daniel muttered, keeping his voice down so Michaela, absorbed in the schedules, could not hear them. "Well, imagine you have a brilliant daughter who decides to marry an ordinary guy like me, would you be happy about it?" "You're not ordinary, Sully, no way, stop thinking so little of yourself. And, by the way, Michaela is totally smitten with you, any fool can see that." Sully smiled at his friend, "...and I'm totally smitten with her..." he admitted softly, "never thought something like this was possible..."

"Okay, I'm going to order the tickets," Michaela spoke up, amused that the two friends were apparently teasing each other. She prepared to leave the office. Sully immediately reacted. "Hey, hey, where d'ya think you're going without givin' me a proper goodbye kiss?" He grabbed her arm, pulling her towards himself to once more indulge in one of those fiery kisses, which made them forget the world around them. "Can't wait to be home with you," he whispered in her ear, taking care that Daniel did not overhear him, "I won't tell you what I have planned to do to you tonight, otherwise you'll have a problem focussing on your work for the rest of the day." Michaela blushed. He really was something special, this husband of hers. "Sully!" she chastised him, laughing out loud, feeling her body tingle with anticipation for what was going to happen that same evening...


	28. Chapter 28

**Chapter 28** \- _Preparing the trip to Boston - Colorado Springs_

Back in her office, she picked up the phone and ordered the plane tickets. They would leave early in the morning of the 10th of August, arriving in Boston slightly after one o'clock in the afternoon. Once the tickets ordered, she immediately made a second call, this time to her sister Rebecca. With a squeal of joy, Rebecca acknowledged the news of her sister's marriage to the enigmatic Mr Sully and, when Michaela announced that they would be paying the family a visit, Rebecca immediately jotted down their date and hour of arrival, offering to fetch them at Boston airport.

"Are you going to call mother?" she then enquired, knowing full well that Michaela had not yet done so. "Yes, I am going to call her right now," Michaela sighed, not really keen on calling her mother. "Okay, then I let you do that. Have fun, little sister! And don't forget, I want to hear all about your wedding and the wedding night with that new husband of yours!" Michaela sighed again, at the moment her wedding night was not something she was prepared to share with anybody, it was too special, it had been simply out-of-this-world, thanks to Cloud Dancing and Snow Bird's expert tutorials... Hanging up the phone, Michaela prepared herself for the next call: her mother. How was she ever going to get through that?

"Elizabeth Quinn," her mother answered after a few rings. "Hello Mother," Michaela announced herself. "Michaela! How are you, my dear?" "I'm fine, Mother. I'm calling to let you know that next Wednesday I shall pay you a visit. And please note, I am bringing a guest with me. A young man, to be precise." "Anybody special, Michaela?" her mother enquired. "Yes, Mother, someone very, very special to me."

Her mother understood that this was probably a young man who had succeeded in capturing the heart of her youngest daughter. She was overjoyed, wrongly assuming this young man to be one of Michaela's colleagues, in her mind of course also a doctor. She did not doubt that fact for one second. Little did she know that soon she would be rudely awoken when Michaela would present Sully to her. "Well, can you tell me something more about this young man, Michaela?" her mother enquired, curious about a possible future son-in-law. "No, not yet, mother," Michaela returned, "I will introduce you to him when we come to visit you."

From her mother's clearly audible _humph_, Michaela gathered that she was not all too pleased to have to wait another few days before having some more information on what seemed to be a love interest of her daughter. After having exchanged a few more niceties, they hung up. Michaela sighed a deep sigh of relief. That was that. The first step had been taken, a few more to go and the ordeal would be over...

At midday, Sully had come over to her office to see if she was free to have lunch with him and, together, they had headed for the hospital's cafeteria. They managed to find a quiet table in the corner. Still they fetched lots of looks and noticed how the other employees were giggling and whispering to each other, surely about them, Michaela thought. Sully was oblivious to all this, having only eyes for his lovely wife.

Michaela filled Sully in that the tickets were ordered and that she had spoken first to Rebecca and then to her mother. "Did it all go well?" he asked. "Yes, with Rebecca it was great fun, and my mother, well, I just announced that I would come for a visit and that I was bringing someone with me, someone who is very special to me." Sully chuckled. "More than that you did not tell her?" He was incredulous that her mother would have accepted to receive so little information. "I just told her I would introduce her to you when we visited."

Sully was curious now. "Where will we stay? In your old room? Is the bed big enough for the two of us?" Michaela blushed. "It's not really a big bed, so we'll be quite close together..." "As if I would mind that," Sully winked at her. "No, I know, you don't mind, neither do I, you know that, don't you?" "Can't wait to be home with you," he softly repeated what he had already promised her that same morning. She giggled, her body tingled in all its fibres, she was glad to sit in a corner, far from other tables...


	29. Chapter 29

**Chapter 29** \- _Can't wait - Michaela's office at the hospital - Colorado Springs_

At the end of the afternoon, Michaela was in her office. She had been on her feet the entire day and she was looking forward to go home. All her patients had been looked after, and she was glad that there were no serious cases which would risk getting worse during the night. Her phone rang and, picking it up, she was thrilled to hear her husband's manly voice asking her if she were ready to leave for home? "Yes, I am," she answered. "Okay, come to pick you up then."

Almost immediately after hanging up, he was already there. _Did he run?_ She got up and flew into his arms, kissing him rapturously. The hours without him had seemed so long, even her patients had not been able to distract her from the longing she felt to be in his arms again. Images of his body flashed through her mind, the heat waves she felt surging inside of her, told her she would be ready to make love there and then. With all her willpower, she tried to push those wanton images to the back of her mind, only partially succeeding.

Sully pulled back to look into her eyes. What he saw there, turned him on so violently that he almost choked. "'Chaela," he stammered huskily, "are you thinking the same thing as I am?" "Oh, Sully, is there any place where we can have a private moment? I'm about to explode..." "Can we lock your office door and have a _quickie_ on the couch?" he suggested. "The famous _quickie_," she laughed, "I would love to, it's more than exciting, don't you think?" "Sure is..." he croaked, his arousal instantly ready to satisfy her every wish.

She walked over to the door of her office and secured the lock from the inside. Anybody, even those disposing of the code, would not be able to get in. They embraced and started kissing, moving their hands all over their bodies, the excitement of being in her office, adding to the fire they were feeling.

After all these hours of dreaming of him and the love they shared, she revelled in their lovemaking. "Are you comfortable like this?" she looked down at him, he had his eyes closed and was already oblivious to the world around him. "Yeah, I'm fine, never been better," he managed to utter. My god, this woman was more than he had ever heard a woman could be, she was an unbelievable lover, exactly as insatiable as he was, maybe even more... and what was better, she was his lawfully wedded wife... That, he thought, was almost too good to be true, but it was. Their life together had started and they would make it work, of that he was sure...

Without delaying any further, they joined and revelled in the exhilarating feelings this provoked in them. Their dance of love was awesome, it was more than they had ever expected it to be. Realising with a last remnant of rationality, Michaela stilled her movements to warn her beloved that they should be careful not to make too much noise, if someone were to walk by in the corridor, they might be overheard. Sully couldn't care less. He was already elsewhere, in some far-away universe with his gorgeous wife... Let them hear it, he thought, we're married, we're in love and if they guess what we're doing in here and it bothers them to hear that, then they can just pass by and leave us be. It's not as if we are doing this in full view of the world... Her door is locked from the inside, so who cares?

Michaela tried in vain to stifle her customary screech, and reaching her peak, she just let go. Sully, more than excited at his wife's evident passion, also came over the edge and he too, could not stop his usual deep groans of pleasure. "Arrrggghhh...! Arrrggghhh...!" his body shuddering while waves of pleasure held him in their grip. Michaela had dropped down on his chest, she was aware of his erratic heartbeat and at the same time noted that her own heartbeat was also a lot faster than normal. She kissed Sully's neck, burying her face in the nook between his neck and his shoulder. She relished tasting the salty moisture covering his skin, fleetingly it crossed her mind that normally these bodily juices or, for that sake, any bodily moisture, would be considered repulsive, but emanating from Sully's body, they were not at all unpleasant. "'Chaela, are you all right?" he murmured. "I'm fine Sully, do you think we can go home now?" "Yep, good idea, we still have all evening to spend together. I missed you today, you know," he confessed. "I missed you too, I guess that's why we needed this _quickie_," she giggled. "Did you like the _quickie?_" he enquired, curious to hear what she thought of it. "Loved it, but then you know, I love everything we do together, especially when we get completely or even just partly out of our clothes."

_A/N: The original version of this story contains a lot more explicit sexual content, which I have taken out for this website since I realise that not every reader likes that kind of lecture. For those of you who are not squeamish, I would suggest you go to the archiveofourown website, where I have posted the original 'hot' version. You're warned..._


	30. Chapter 30

**Chapter 30** \- _Some Chinese food and more - Homestead - Colorado Springs_

The drive home was a welcome interlude. They enjoyed being together, they had both been longing all day to be close to their _soul mate_. Sully loved driving her car, proud that she trusted him with it, since it was so special to her. "What'd'you wanna eat?" he asked her, offering: "Shall we stop on our way home and fetch some Chinese takeaway?" "Oh yes, I love Chinese food, discovered it when I was in medical school, when I shared a room with Miriam and we didn't feel like cooking anything ourselves or going to the mensa. Do you know of any tasty Chinese nearby?" "Yep, sure do," he assured her, smiling his dimpled smile, making her melt with love for him.

Parking the car in front of the Chinese restaurant a few minutes later, they went inside to the takeaway counter and started studying the menu. Their heads close together, inhaling each other's scent, Sully couldn't refrain from giving her a chaste kiss on her cheek. Looking over the menu, they were surprised to find that they more or less liked the same dishes, which greatly facilitated their choice. Armed with the hot food, wrapped up in the special packaging to keep it at a high temperature, they soon arrived home. The warm summer air was still hanging over the land, and, looking at each other, they almost together said: "Shower?" Laughing out loud at the sheer unbelievable way in which their minds travelled along the same path, they agreed that a nice lukewarm shower was due, especially after the delicious happenings in Michaela's office...

Sully switched on the oven and programmed it on a low temperature, just enough to keep the food warm. Michaela took out some empty oven dishes and after filling them, they placed it all in the oven, anticipating a nice hot meal together once they would have taken the shower. They shed their clothes and stepped under the warm water. Washing each other's body inevitably turned them on, but Sully decided they would postpone any more love making until later that evening. For the moment, the next thing they would be doing, was to enjoy the Chinese food. In a few words, he explained this to Michaela, and she fully agreed, knowing full well that any deferral would only increase their need for each other, resulting in more passion and astonishing peaks. He remembered that there was still some leftover Champagne in the refrigerator. It would be nice to have a drink and make Michaela relax even more than she normally did when they were having a good time together.

Towelling each other dry, they joked and laughed like two frolicking teenagers. Sully, emboldened by the knowledge that the level of his wife's libido was just as high as his own, looked at her and asked: "D'you mind if we don't get dressed? It's still nice and warm outside and also in the house, and I simply love to see you in your birthsuit..." Michaela couldn't help blushing. Even though within a few days since her marriage she been able to shed most of her shyness, it still made her blush when Sully came up with any idea to enhance their togetherness. Of course she was more than welcoming his idea of remaining in the nude for the rest of the evening, including the ensuing night. Sully was more than aroused, but with lots of willpower, he told himself to be patient and keep his passion under control, he would let it out ever the more forcefully later in the evening.

The Chinese food was delicious, but it was far too much for them to finish it all. When Sully came back from the kitchen with the two flutes and the Champagne, Michaela giggled, remembering how being slightly tipsy had made her enjoy their lovemaking even more intensely than at other times, since under the influence of the drink, she was able to relax a bit better and let go completely. Sully filled the flutes and they toasted on their future together. Michaela sipped the delicious liquid, drinking more and more of it, emptying her flute in a matter of minutes. Sully's also did not last long and soon, Michaela felt the same floating sensation as previously when she had indulged in consuming this stimulating liquid.

The sight of her naked husband drove her almost insane and she croaked: "Sully, either you put on some clothes, or I will go mad with wanting you here and now!" "Another _quickie?"_ he joked. "No, no _quickie_ this time, let's go upstairs, I want all of you and I want to take my time for that," she managed to say. "Lemme first put the rests of our Chinese in the fridge." And with those words, Sully picked up all that remained of their delicious meal and placed the dishes in the fridge, after covering them with a flimsy plastic wrap. Walking back to Michaela, he encircled her in his arms, and whispered: "Ready to go and have some fun with me?!" Her body tingled all over. Again they did not succeed in walking at a leisurely pace, they ran upstairs, turned on by the sight they made and the waves of heat washing over them.

Driven by her desire, Michaela let herself fall down on the bed with a deep sigh. The Champagne helped her relax, it simply felt great. With eyes full of love, she looked up at Sully, who knelt down, bending his head to kiss her nipple while fondling the other with his hand. Unable to remain idle, Michaela buried her hands in his hair, moving down to caress his strong shoulders. Sully was all instinct now. He wanted to give her as much pleasure as possible, to show her how much he loved her. These feelings were unbelievable, so intense, he almost lost control...

Moving up, he took her lips for a long, deep kiss. Their tongues met and their dance of love started. Their hands were all over their bodies, none of the special spots which they knew the other liked, was forgotten. The passion they felt for each other increased by the minute and they both knew that it would not take long before they would no longer be able to delay joining their bodies.

_"'Chaela!"_ he implored, his voice raw with passion, "I can hardly hold on any longer!" Michaela in turn covered his lips with hers, moving down to his neck and chest, teasing his nipples which were instantly hardening. The moans escaping from this throat pleased her more than anything, the power she had over him, made her feel proud and confident that they were on the right path to make their union a success. Caressing his chest with her mouth and tongue was very rewarding, both for him and for her. Their passion was all-consuming, they felt dizzy with love for each other.

Taking a deep breath, they tried to calm down. Michaela looked up at Sully, they couldn't help but laugh out loud that they were so much on the same wavelength on the subject of intimacy. "We're crazy, Sully, I love you so much," Michaela breathed near his ear, her eyes overflowing with feelings of love for him. She moved herself over his body, covering him completely, which made him moan once more with pleasure. Being allowed to be skin-to-skin at any given moment of the day or night, was something they loved about the freedom married life had brought them.

She turned on her back and, no longer wanted to control his urges, Sully joined them as one. As always, they thoroughly enjoyed the encounter and reaching their pinnacles was once more a marvellous experience. Awed by the pleasure they were able to procure each other, Sully let himself drop down beside her, waiting to get back to some normality before he would be able to comment on the heavenly sensations he was undergoing when they were making love.

After a few minutes, her heartbeat and breathing both having returned to a more normal rhythm, she whispered in his ear: "Thank you, Sully." "For what?" he wondered aloud. "For everything, your love, your understanding, your consideration, for being who you are, the most special and loveable man ever." Sully chuckled. "What d'you think you're for me, Michaela?" "Your... _Heartsong?_" she guessed jokingly. "Yes, _my Heartsong, my hesta-noo'otse,"_ and with those words, he took her lips for a well-deserved, long and deep kiss. Completely at peace now, wholly sated for the time being, Sully knew he needed to broach a few subjects with her, one of which would be the management of their respective finances. Closely entwined, he hoped their impending but necessary talk would not spoil their heavenly togetherness.


	31. Chapter 31

**Chapter 31** \- _Money trouble, or at least trying to avoid it - the Sully Homestead_

At a loss how to begin, he sighed. "What was that sigh for?" Michaela wanted to know, "aren't you happy?" "Oh yes, I'm totally happy," he answered, "but there is something we have to talk about and I don't know where to start." "I guess I know what you're thinking of," she countered, "you're surely worried about our finances and how we are going to deal with them. Am I right? Is that what you're preoccupied with?" "Yep, that's it. Problem is, I can't offer you the life you've been used to so far. And I don't wanna take any money from you, can you understand that?" "No, I can't," Michaela said, "we are married, half of what I possess, belongs to you now too, like you said of your homestead, that now belongs half to me, right?" Sully pondered her words. He was more than happy to give her half his homestead and land, but from her, he did not want anything in return. The fact that she had consented to marry him without any further thought, fully convinced of her love for him and his love for her, her trust in him, in short, the fact that she loved him unconditionally, was more than enough for him.

"Don't you want to know what my fortune consists of?" she asked him. "Nope, money has never been important to me, never thought about it a lot. I'm glad to have a steady job that pays well enough for me to pay my bills and in the past few years be able to pay for the material which I needed to renovate this homestead, but for the rest, I live modestly from one day into the other without worrying too much about money. But now, with you, we've got to see if my modest way of living agrees with you. If you want things that I can't afford, then maybe you can use your own money to buy that. How's that sound?" "Fair enough," she conceded, "but I also want to make a substantial contribution to our household expenses. I earn enough at the hospital not to have to fall back on the proceeds from my father's inheritance. That money is mostly invested, I have a current account and an investment account with a bank in Boston. The invested money yields some cash returns each year, which I either take out or leave to be invested again. Apart from my car and some expensive clothes, I live quite modestly too, my doctoring used to be the main priority in my life, but now, since I have met and married you, you have become my main priority. I would love to share my accounts with you, Sully. I don't think of us as two different people, I think of us as one, we are one. You are a part of me, and that's a very powerful feeling. If you are willing to give me half of your possessions, then you, in turn, should accept half of my possessions. If not, then we'll have to go see an attorney and ask him to dress up a postnuptial agreement, so that we both know on what terms we are married to each other. After that, we will have to work out how much I am going to pay for living here, the food we buy and all other expenses we might have for the two of us."

Michaela fell silent. The subject was hurting her, in her mind, Sully was so much part of her that she wished to share all she had with him. What was happening now, what Sully was saying, felt like being rejected, and it made her very sad. Yet he had said that she now owned half of his homestead, why could he not admit that they were equal partners? Sully, in turn, pondered her words. He knew a postnuptial agreement was the answer to his problem, but then they would have to work out how much she would contribute to the overall household costs. He sighed. This was one side of marriage he did not like. "I don't know what to say, Michaela," he softly said. "You have already given me so much, you make me so endlessly happy, your unconditional love for me is something I have never dreamed of would ever happen to me, and then on top of that to accept that you share your earnings and your inheritance with me, I can't just accept that. As your husband, I want to provide for you. Why don't we let this subject rest for the moment, to see how it works out in our day-to-day life, let me provide for you and if I can't afford something you want, then, by all means, pay for that with your own money. Would that be acceptable to you?" Michaela remained silent, carefully turning over in her mind what exactly he was saying and what her response to that should be.

Finally she knew it, she had made up her mind and told him: "No, not acceptable. Let's set out like this, but you will have to let me pay for things as well. We can roughly keep track of our expenses, paying for them in turn. Surely that must be possible? We don't have to figure it all out to the last cent, but I am sure we will know who has paid what and when, and whose turn it is to pay for something." "Fair enough," Sully agreed. "When did I last tell you that I love you?" "Mmm, that was ages ago, Mr Sully, you're sadly lacking in your husbandry duties..." She leaned down and kissed the smooth skin of his neck, again she enjoyed tasting the salty moisture on her tongue. "You taste heavenly, Mr Sully," she couldn't help but whisper, full of love and longing. "Well, Mrs Sully, sorry to tell you, but you taste even better, there's no part of your body I wouldn't like to kiss."

If ever words turned her on, then it was these ones. He had already kissed her in every single spot of her body, he had even kissed her feet, her toes, too much to name them all. "Shall we go down and watch something on TV?" she proposed, well aware that it would be too exaggerated to make love again, even though she felt the familiar tingles travel through all her body's fibres again. "Is there anything special you'd wanna see?" Sully asked. "I got some DVD's, let's go down, I'll show them to you. D'y'wanna get dressed?" "Uh-uh, it's still warm enough. If I get cold, I'll just look at you and my temperature will immediately rise," she giggled. "My temperature never went down," Sully confessed, "I'm all the time in a state of excitement, seeing you like this doesn't help to keep my urges under control," Sully chuckled. "You've got an unbelievable effect on me, Mrs Sully..."

And with those words, they tumbled down the stairs, laughing out loud, holding each other and kissing, almost losing their balance and risking to fall down. "Whoa!" Sully called out, "careful there, we don't wanna get hurt!" "I can see the headlines," she laughed, _"madly in love couple tumbles down the stairs, fully naked, almost killing themselves while kissing and cuddling..."_ Their roars of laughter echoed through the house and were heard by a visitor, who had ventured out there to find out how married life was agreeing with his best friend...


	32. Chapter 32

**Chapter 32** \- _An unexpected visitor - the Sully Homestead_

_Well, at least they're having fun,_ Daniel thought to himself, upon hearing the peals of laughter from both his friend and his gorgeous wife. He knocked on the door and, if he could have seen their panic-stricken faces, he would have burst out laughing. Michaela instantly turned around and took a frantic run up the stairs, to get dressed. The sole idea of being caught in the nude, was so devastatingly horrific to her, that she would do anything to avoid it. Sully walked over to the front door and tried to see through the oval glass window, who was at the other side. Guessing it to be Daniel at the sight of the blurred contours, for security's sake he called out: "Who's there?" "Daniel!" came the immediate response. "Okay, come on in, but don't be surprised at what you see!" Sully called out, opening the door to let his friend in.

Daniel, upon seeing Sully, burst out laughing. "Sully! What's this?!" "You've seen me in the buff before, Daniel, don't act as if you're shocked." "Where's Michaela?" Daniel noticed her absence. "Yeah, wouldn't you like to see her in the buff as well, now wouldn't you?!" Sully teased him. "'Course not," Daniel protested, "bet she's upstairs putting on some clothes. So you're at least having fun with each other whenever you can?" he assumed. "You might well say that," Sully agreed. "Lemme go up and get decent as well." And with those words, he turned around and ascended the stairs. Michaela, now fully dressed in jeans and a tank top, stood at the top of the stairs, watching her gorgeous husband coming towards her in all his glory. "It's Daniel," he said, "just go down, I'll be there in a minute."

Slightly embarrassed at the situation they were caught in, Michaela walked over to Daniel and greeted him. Seeing her deep blush, Daniel felt sorry for her and, trying to reassure her by smiling indulgently at her, he said: "Excuse me for intruding like this, but please, don't feel shy, Michaela, you're newlyweds and as such, you're entitled to enjoy each other to the fullest. Don't let it bother you." "I know, but it is a bit awkward, I'm not really used to be so open about these things, you'll have to excuse me," Michaela managed to stutter, hoping that Sully would hurry up to come down.

Footsteps on the stairs signalled that her wish was being fulfilled by her beloved husband who would come to her rescue from this embarrassing situation. She turned around and smiled at Sully who joined them. "So what were you up to, apart from walking around the house naked?" Daniel asked them. "We were just about to sit down and watch something on TV," Sully informed his friend. "I see, TV in the nude," Daniel teased. Michaela, not used to such frank talk, shyly looked down at her feet. Sully, noticing how uncomfortable the pranks between Daniel and himself were making her, took her in his arms and, trying to soothe her, he said: "That's guys' talk, Michaela, sorry to make you so uncomfortable." "I know it is," she softly admitted, "I'm just not used to it." Looking up at him, the world vanished for them, they forgot all about Daniel and kept looking into each other's eyes, an understanding, unmeasurably deep, travelling through them.

Daniel couldn't help but notice what was happening between his friend and his stunning wife. He was awed by what he witnessed. He had never seen two people who were so in tune with each other, they really were meant to be together, Daniel mused. It was downright amazing. The way they looked at each other was almost unreal. It was as if they silently read each other's minds, Daniel thought. Would he ever find his soul mate? he wondered. That would be marvellous... He had been on some dates, but with none of these girls or at a later age, young women, had he ever experienced what Sully and Michaela were having together, the love they had for each other seemed to surpass anything that he had esteemed to be possible so far.

With some effort, Michaela and Sully pulled themselves back to reality. She was aware that as a good hostess, she was supposed to offer Daniel something to drink, or even to eat. It crossed her mind that there were some leftovers of the delicious Chinese food they had enjoyed earlier. "Daniel, can I do you a favour with some lovely Chinese dishes?" she shyly asked their guest. Tempted, Daniel looked at Sully. "Yep," the latter said, "we stopped on our way home to get some real good Chinese food, still have some of it left, so be our guest, it's no trouble at all, I can quickly warm it up for you." "Well," Daniel began, "if it really is no problem, yeah, I'd love to take you up on your offer."

Sully went to the kitchen and switched on the oven. Taking out the dishes from the fridge, he placed them in the still lukewarm oven, estimating that it would take about fifteen minutes for the food to reach an acceptable temperature. "Care for a beer?" Sully called to his friend from the kitchen. "Nope, still gotta drive, just a glass of water will do," Daniel called back. "Come to the kitchen," Michaela suggested and together they walked over to Sully who was preparing the table and some water to drink. Surprised to see that he had set the table for three, she looked at Sully who, sheepishly, nodded and said: "I don't mind eatin' somethin' again, an' you?" She laughed. "You're right, I also could do with some more food."

It was a lovely meal, and afterwards, they sat down in the living room. Sully and Daniel had chosen a DVD with a film to watch together. Michaela sat beside Sully and leaned on his shoulder, tired of her day's work and the more than intense interlude with her husband up in their bedroom. Sully had popped the DVD in the player. It was a strange film, a thriller, and Michaela was not all too keen to watch. She felt her eyes drop and let herself drift away in quiet slumber. Sully, noticing that she had fallen asleep, turned down the volume so that she would not be too much disturbed by the sometimes loud scenes of the film. He looked down on his sleeping wife and smiled. Life was good, his best friend had come to see them and in his arms, his adorable wife was resting. The awkward subject about their finances had been discussed and they had come to a temporary solution. Tomorrow they would drive out to work together again, he mused.

Later in the evening, Michaela having woken up from her more than welcome nap, they said goodbye to Daniel, who thanked them for their hospitality and the nice meal. "Come by anytime, Daniel," Sully invited. "Don't want to intrude too often," Daniel said, winking at Sully that he knew they needed to be alone a lot in the first months of their married life together. "Don't worry 'bout that," Sully said, laughing at his friend's insinuating glances.


	33. Chapter 33

**Chapter 33** \- _Some confessions and more 'experiments' - the Sully Homestead _

Michaela yawned. "That was quite a day, are you ready to go to sleep?" she innocently asked Sully. He looked at her. "Sleep? Or something else?" he winked. "Oh Sully," she moaned, "are we never going to get enough of each other?" "Not yet," he warned her, "we still have a lot of catching up to do." "Catching up?" she asked, curious what he meant by that. "I wanted to make love to you the moment I saw you, and that was, uhm, how long ago? So for each day we didn't, I'm still catching up." She laughed out loud, "Sully! You're really something, you know that?" "And that, Mrs Sully, is all your fault. Before meeting you, I hardly ever thought of a woman, but once I had met you, you were forever on my mind and you don't wanna know what I dreamt of doing with you." "I can more or less imagine," she giggled, continuing: "but you must have had some urges from time to time, didn't you?" she was more than curious to know how he had handled that part of his life. She, for one, knew that she had only had some dreams from which she would wake up with a tingling feeling but, as a medical student, she had correctly assumed that this was one of the natural functions of her body. She supposed that Sully had also had those dreams, and, as a boy and later on as a young man, had probably reverted to doing what most young men do... In medical school they had vaguely said something on the subject, indicating that these were normal things for men to do.

Sully had heard her last question but was slightly at a loss how to formulate an adequate answer. This was so very personal, he did not know how to go about this, even though his overall attitude to all sexual things was void of any inhibitions, mainly due to his years with the Cheyenne who were very open and outspoken about intimacy. "Well, I, uh... had dreams of course. As a doctor, you know about that, don't you?" he hoped she would be satisfied with that explanation, he really felt too shy to tell her about what he had all talked about with Daniel, the things they had looked up on the internet when they got really curious and, what he had, in the privacy of his room, done to himself. Was she really expecting him to tell her that?

"Dreams?" she repeated, "I had dreams too, not very often, but I would wake up feeling all tingly. But that was all there is. For you too? Just dreams?" she pressed on. "Do you really want me to tell you, Michaela?" Noticing his shyness, she hastened to say: "No, don't Sully, it's none of my business, this is too personal and I understand you do not want to talk about it." Inwardly he thanked her for offering him a way out of his embarrassment. On the other hand, he mused, she was his wife, why not tell her all there was to it? She had seen all of him, she had seen him in the most intimate way, she had caressed his body in all possible places, so why not share that part of his life with her as well?

Sully cleared his throat. "I do wanna talk about it. I don't wanna hold back anything from you about myself. So yes, I had dreams and yes, from time to time, when the tension in my body built up too much, I took care of it." He waited for her reaction. Would she be disgusted with him? What exactly had they told her in medical school? He didn't have to wait long for her answer. "That's what they taught us in medical school, that it was something most boys and young men did, a fully natural bodily function." He sighed, relieved that she was able to treat this in such a rational manner. But now he got curious as well. "And you, Michaela, did you just dream, or did you do what I did?" She giggled, "Of course I did, but the real thing, with you, is a lot better..." she softly added. "The Cheyenne are less prude about their sex life than we are," Sully said, "they talk about these things quite openly. They have a funny habit of asking a young man, after he got married, if his wife is _enthusiastic_. You know, I appreciate your _enthusiasm_ very much..." "Sully, do you have any idea how much your words excite me? Do you think we can continue this talk upstairs in the bedroom?"

Up the stairs they ran, in their room, they ripped off their clothes, their urgency was all overpowering, both fully aroused now. She feared she would come over the edge from sheer anticipation of what she knew her husband was going to do to her. Sully let himself fall on his back on the bed, and she let herself drop at his side. Their lovemaking was awesome, they let themselves be fully carried away and, after reaching most satisfying peaks, they laid in each other's arms, happy and calmed down, ready to go to sleep.

They needed some time to get back to normal, and once he felt that he had full command of his voice again, he whispered, "This was perfect, 'Chaela, thank you so much." "Thank you too, Sully, you're right, it was perfect." They softly laughed, how good was life to them! Would it always be like that? "Shall we go for a wash?" he suggested. "Mmm, good idea," her voice was still lazy, but she agreed that it was time they took care of their personal hygiene. Sully stood up and, bending down, swept her up in his arms. She was not very heavy, he could easily carry her. It felt so good to have her in his arms, he was dizzy with pure love for her. "Sully! I can walk!" she called out. "No, you can't," he countered, "I'm gonna carry you to the shower, don't you like it?" "Of course I like it, being in your arms like this is paradise, you know that very well, don't you? I regret I'm not strong enough, but I would love to carry you like this in my arms too." He chuckled, always the independent Michaela, wanting to do all he did, but sometimes she simply lacked the physical force to do so.

After one more delicious shower, they decided it was time for bed. They snuggled into each other's arms, feeling happy and contented. "Michaela," Sully said softly to her, "I loved what you did the other night, touching me and waking me up to make love with you. If during the night you feel that you need that again, please wake me like that, it was too good to be true..." Michaela giggled, "Okay, if I feel certain urges, I will act on them. But now we better sleep, tomorrow is another day." And with those words they soon drifted off to sleep, solidly anchored in each other's tight embrace.

Before long, Michaela was dreaming of Sully. In her dream, she saw Sully with a newborn baby in his arms. With infinite care he placed soft kisses on the baby's head, his eyes overflowing with love for this small infant, so completely dependent on her parents' care. Without any further thought, Michaela knew it was a little girl. Sully looked up at her and peace and quiet reigned in her dream, emotions of gratefulness and happiness washed over her, far away, at the back of her mind, there was a melody softly playing. A sweet melody of love and endless longing for him, the love of her life, her Sully...

Sully, in turn, did not fall asleep immediately, but revelled in the awareness of his wife's naked skin upon his. He had wrapped her up in his arms, her head was resting in the nook of his neck. From her steady breathing, he gathered she was already asleep. He wondered what it would be like if she were to fall pregnant. They had been married for just a short time, but since they made love so often, without taking any precaution to prevent a pregnancy, it would not at all be unlikely that such a joyous event could occur any time...

The possibility of having a child with Michaela, the love of his life, the idea of becoming a father, it all was too much to cope with at once. He sighed, their future seemed clear and bright, soon they would go to Boston where Michaela would present him to her family. He understood how disturbing this visit must be for Michaela, and he vowed to do all in his power to help her through the confrontation with her mother. He steeled himself against the condescending remarks he would certainly have to suffer, reminding himself that the only thing that mattered, was the love they had for each other. No one would ever be able to disturb the solid foundation on which they would build their future. He relaxed and slowly drifted off into a good night's sleep, secretly hoping that Michaela would wake him with some, uhm... _special wishes?_


	34. Chapter 34

**Chapter 34** \- _Some special wishes - a husband's dream - the Sully Homestead _

Early in the morning, while the soft light of dawn and the cool morning's breeze were entering through the half-open window of their bedroom, Michaela opened her eyes, aware of an all-overwhelming feeling of happiness. The heat radiating from her husband's body was intense, so she stuck her leg out from under the warm covers, in an attempt to cool off a little. Sully's chest was gently heaving up and down with his breathing, she even heard and felt his heartbeat, that steady _thump-thump_, a sound she simply adored. She realised how completely she trusted Sully, he had become a pillar in her existence, there was no possible way in which she could imagine her life without him. Grateful that he had a job where he incurred only minor risks of getting injured, she felt confident that their future would be filled with happy events, her dream of being blessed with a little girl flashed through her mind.

Sully, so tenderly kissing the head of his daughter, _their_ daughter, was a dream she was convinced would one day become a reality. And maybe they would even have more children, the homestead offered more than enough room for many children and was an ideal place to raise them. She gently caressed the bare skin of her beloved husband, this special man, once more bewildered at its smoothness. On her thigh, she felt his arousal, the normal male reaction to sleep and warmth. Of its own volition, her hand moved down to touch him, her own arousal, the throbbing and pulsating sensations in her inner centre, immediately setting in. She felt a bit guilty for waking him up this way, but then she remembered that he had even urged her to act upon her desires, that waking him up like this pleased him immensely...

Still solidly anchored in Morpheus' arms, Sully was dreaming of a luscious young lady, funny enough the spitting image of his gorgeous wife, showering him with caresses and touches to his most sensitive part. It felt so marvellous that he feared he might come over the edge before he even would have had a chance to join her. Slowly shedding the daze of sleep, he emerged to reality and the fact that he was excited beyond measure, that the nymph revealed to be his beloved wife and that she was, like the other night, caressing him in the one place affecting him most... Looking into her eyes, they silently concurred that their desire and longing for each other ran along the same path, "You're sure?" Sully whispered. "Yes, fully," she softly answered back.

Moving on top of her, he joined them. _This feels so good... Make it last..._ he admonished himself, _give her the pleasure she deserves..._ Her reactions to his loving efforts urged him on, he slowly started to move, their unconscious moans and groans of sheer marital bliss escaping their mouths, echoing through the room and flying out the window, where nature witnessed, just like 135 years ago, a love with no limits, so pure and sincere that it would last beyond their lifetime, an example for future generations who would be fascinated to listen and read about the love these very special ancestors had for each other.

Sully could no longer sustain this slow pace, his instinct took over and commandeered him to increase the speed, inevitably leading to his climax. Hearing her characteristic, but very unladylike screech, he knew she had come over the edge. It was sheer paradise. Michaela, in turn, was riding the waves of pleasure, fleetingly she noticed that her peak seemed to prolong itself as compared to the experiences she had made in the first days of her marriage, prolonging her pleasure.

Dizzy with passion, Sully's moves became more and more frenzied, letting himself go completely, forgetting the world around him and awed at the unbelievable events happening to him on his journey into intimacy with the most fabulous lover on the planet, his gorgeous, passionate wife... Coming over the edge, his body started shuddering, and, unable to hold back his loud grunts, he let them out: _"Arrrggghhh, arrrggghhh,"_ as he was hit full force by his peak. Michaela let go a second time, feeling how blissful and pleasant it was to feel this way, the bliss was there, the love she felt for her amazing husband gaining in strength with each passing day and each marvellous moment of making love with him.

The following days and nights were filled with work and leisure, whereby the leisure part consisted most of the time of amorous activities, some short, jokingly called the _quickies_, and some more prolonged, when they both could hold back their respective releases to make the encounter last beyond the usual duration. Michaela had not wasted any time on procuring a book depicting a man and woman in all sorts of positions when making love. They had great fun looking at the illustrations, most of the time of course trying out all these positions themselves, both having the giggles and being turned on by just looking at the pictures and imagining themselves in any of them.

When needed, they went shopping for groceries together, but once at home, Sully did most of the cooking. Michaela watched him, awed by his expertise, at the same time trying to learn from him. The day for their trip to Boston was rapidly approaching, Michaela was anxious but knowing she would have Sully by her side, she managed to suppress most of her anxiety and enjoy the hours she could be with him.

At work, all their colleagues, especially the female staff, were endeared witnessing them together, without speaking, the love they felt for each other was clearly written on their faces. Dr Clifford had kept away from Michaela, he was still intensely jealous of Sully, but succeeded very well in hiding his feelings. Only his secretary, Dorothy Jennings, knew that something was bothering her boss.

Charlotte was euphoric that her dear friend Michaela was so happy in her marriage with Sully. The two women had talked quite often and also in detail about very intimate subjects. Having been married for many years, Charlotte proved to be a reliable source of information to Michaela, who for some things was still at a loss how to handle them.


	35. Chapter 35

**Chapter 35** \- _The trip to Boston_

Tuesday evening, the 9th of August, the newlyweds decided to have an early night, since their flight would leave very early. Daniel had offered to drive them to the airport and he would also pick them up at their return. They had packed two small carry-on cases with a few belongings and, Michaela, anxious that Sully should make a good first impression on her relatives, had asked him to show her what he intended to wear. Together they had gone through his clothes to make a choice. To her astonishment, Michaela found out that Sully owned a splendid three-piece suit of a medium grey colour, made out of a precious woollen fabric. "Sully! she couldn't help but exclaim, "what is this magnificent suit? When did you wear this?" Sully chuckled. "I bought it at a sale, some years ago. It just happened to catch my eye, it went so cheap that I figured it might come in handy if ever I were forced to get dressed up all fancy." "Do you think it still fits?" "Yeah, guess so," he returned, "d'you want me to wear that? It's not what I like most, but for you, I'd do anything." Grateful that he understood her unease at the imminent confrontation with her family, she smiled at him. For herself she chose one of her more expensive Chanel two-piece suits with matching handbag and shoes. She wondered what Sully's reaction was going to be when he would realise that they were not flying economy, but business class.

All was set and Wednesday morning early, Daniel came to fetch them. He whistled when he saw this stunningly beautiful couple emerging from their home. They really were a vision, he was sure that they would draw many an admiring glance from people who happened to see them. When Michaela had seen Sully in his splendid suit, she had felt a lump in her throat. He was so handsome, she was sure her sisters would be jealous of her to have such a gorgeous husband. Sully, in turn, looked at his wife in her Chanel two-piece and underwent the same sensations as she did. Looking over at Daniel and noticing the awed look on his friend's face, Sully knew that their choice of garments would prove to be the right one. With hardly any traffic in and around town, the drive to the airport was quiet and relaxed. "When is your return flight?" Daniel enquired, "I can come and fetch you again, if you want." "That would be a good idea, thank you so much, Daniel," giving him the details of their return flight.

The flight to Boston was on time, and, when Michaela led Sully to the check-in desk, he tugged at her arm, pointing out: "This is the business class desk, Michaela, aren't you mistaken?" She looked at him and softly responded: "No mistake Sully, our first time together was special, so I reckon that our first flight together should also be special. So yes, business class it is." Speechless, Sully could only nod, stunned once more how lucky he was to have such a wonderful wife. He leaned over and whispered in her ear: "You're a miracle, Michaela, how did I ever get so lucky that, of all men on earth, you chose me?" She blushed, "I'm the lucky one, Sully, don't you ever forget it. And as for the choosing bit, I had no choice, mother nature decided that for me. I was smitten with you the moment I saw you, no choice there." He chuckled, it was the same for him...

Sitting comfortably in the business class section of the aeroplane, Sully had to admit that it had its advantages. The seats were lovely and spacey, they received a very tasty breakfast, morning papers were distributed and, overall, the service was excellent. Mulling it all over, he decided that yes, he might get used to this. He felt that Michaela was fretting over the impending visit to her family. Taking her hand in his and giving it a loving squeeze, he tried to soothe her, saying: "Don't fret, 'Chaela, it will all go fine. I won't leave your side, not for one minute. We'll get through this together." Michaela looked at him: "You don't know my mother and sisters, Sully, they can be very offending, to the point of really hurting people. All, except Rebecca. She has always been my strongest support, all through my life, together with my father."

With a shock, Michaela realised that she hardly ever thought of her father anymore, the pain she had felt before meeting Sully, was no longer there. Gratefully, she turned to him and confessed: "Sully, do you realise how much you have helped me to get over the loss of my father?" "How did I do that?" he wondered. "Just by being there, loving me, when I think of my father now, that awful pain is gone. Thank you for being my husband, always so considerate and taking such good care of me." "You take care of me too, 'Chaela, you've taken away that awful feeling of loneliness I carried within myself for so many years, I love you more than words can ever tell." He lifted her hand to his lips and kissed it. No more words were needed, instinctively they knew they could rely entirely on each other and, with that knowledge, they peacefully sat side by side, holding hands and occasionally caressing each other's cheek in a gesture of deep seated love.

At the airport, Sully took both their carry-on cases, to give Michaela a chance to move freely. Michaela looked around to see if her sister Rebecca was there. Soon she let out a loud squeal, scaring Sully that something serious had happened, but when he saw the love of his life sprinting towards another, expensively dressed lady, he knew the sisters had found each other. They hugged and kissed, exuberant in their joy to see each other again. "So where is this Mr Sully of yours, Michaela?" Rebecca asked, dying with curiosity to finally meet the object of her sister's love. She did see, at a little distance, a devastatingly good-looking young man, but she could hardly believe that her little sister would have landed such a prize...

Michaela looked around and signalled Sully to approach. Speechless, Rebecca watched this splendid specimen of mother nature come closer and closer. _My god, what a stunning-looking guy_, she couldn't help but think. _Wait till Marjorie, our other sister, sees him..._ Smiling his broad smile, Sully walked over to Michaela and Rebecca. He stretched out his hand and Michaela said: "Rebecca, may I present you, my husband, Byron Sully. Sully, this is my favourite sister, Rebecca." They shook hands and Rebecca, having regained some of her senses, cordially said: "So pleased to meet you, Mr Sully." He chuckled. "It's just _Sully_, please drop the _Mister_ part. And as for my first name _Byron_, I never liked it, so I never use it." Rebecca smiled at him, she decided there and then that she liked him, liked him even a lot. Michaela and Sully looked at each other and Rebecca, noticing that look, instinctively knew that these two were madly in love. Well, her little sister deserved no better than a husband who adored her, Rebecca concluded. "Shall we go home?" she proposed. Michaela and Sully nodded and followed her, as she led the way to her car.

Rebecca, cognisant of Michaela's anxiety for the imminent confrontation with their mother, preferred to take her guests with her to her home first, to relax and get ready for the evening dinner at the Quinn Residence. Upon arriving at her grandiose brownstone mansion, Sully looked in awe. So in this neighbourhood the love of his life had grown up... Compared to that, Colorado Springs was totally different. He still was astonished that Michaela would have adapted to his modest way of life with such ease. It proved once again, how special she was.

Rebecca's husband Richard, a lawyer, had come over from his office to welcome his sister-in-law. The introductions made, they had a very pleasant conversation over a cup of tea. Richard, offering Sully something stronger, was surprised to hear him say that he rarely drank anything else but tea, coffee or water. As a lawyer, Richard had seen too many couples failing their marriage because of excessive drinking, so he was extremely glad for Michaela that she, at least for the moment, would not fall victim to such mishap. Richard, like his wife, decided that he liked Sully very much and, judging by the looks he intercepted between the two newlyweds, he concluded that they were head over heels in love with each other.

Rebecca had told her husband that Sully was a maintenance engineer at the hospital and Richard had rightly predicted that this might not be to the taste of Michaela's mother. But now, having conversed at length with Sully, he saw the integrity and honesty of his sister-in-law's husband. His mother-in-law might balk, but in the end she would come to accept the evidence of the deep love between her youngest daughter and this special young man.

Not long afterwards, the children came home from school. They were well-behaved and absolutely thrilled to see their aunt Mike. Sully chuckled at the name _Mike_, it really suited her. _Dr Mike_ had become in a short time synonym for compassion, joy, humour and empathy in the Colorado Springs hospital where she worked. She brought a ray of sunlight wherever she went.


	36. Chapter 36

**Chapter 36** \- _An awkward confrontation - Quinn Residence - Boston_

Dinner would be at around seven o'clock in the Quinn Residence. Elizabeth Quinn was anxious to finally see her youngest again and to ascertain for herself that Michaela was doing well, so far away in the West. Martha, her precious domestic help and Maria, her cook, had received strict orders as to what should be served at dinner. By six o'clock, the doorbell rang and Harrison, the butler, opened the heavy oak door to let the guests in. Rebecca and Richard went in first, Michaela followed them, enthusiastically greeting the butler, whom she had known all her life. "Miss Michaela, what pleasure to see you!" Harrison greeted her. Behind her, he noticed a handsome young man and, briefed by Rebecca a few days ago, he gathered that this would be Miss Michaela's new husband. Michaela turned around and introduced Sully to Harrison. "Mrs Quinn, your mother, is expecting you in the parlour. Your other sisters are not yet here, but I think they will arrive soon as well," Harrison announced, leading the way to the parlour. Rebecca and Richard headed for the library, knowing that Michaela and Sully needed to talk with Elizabeth Quinn in private. They would fetch Michaela and Sully's carry-on cases later on from their car, Richard decided.

Sully looked around at the grand mansion. Everything breathed wealth. Again he felt overwhelmed that Michaela would have fallen for him, compared to these people and their way of life, he was a nobody, if only he could look into the future to make sure that he could offer her what she needed! Pushing these negative, anxious thoughts aside, he concentrated on the task at hand, to make a good first impression on his mother-in-law. Entering the parlour, Elizabeth Quinn looked up to see her youngest walk over to her. She stood up and warmly hugged her daughter, calling out: "Michaela! I am so glad to see you! Welcome home! Let me look at you!" Pushing her daughter back a little, she gave her the one over, saying: "You definitely look radiant, Michaela, now tell me, who is the mystery guest you announced you would bring with you?" and with those words, she looked over Michaela's shoulder to see a most charming young man, definitely very handsome, and dressed impeccably in an expensive looking suit, standing in the doorway. Michaela turned and motioned to Sully to approach.

From the threshold, Sully had observed the interaction between mother and daughter. He could see the reverence Michaela had for her mother, but at the same time, he felt her anxiety. When Michaela motioned him to approach, he walked over with his relaxed gait, intent on helping Michaela to get through these difficult first moments. "Mother," Michaela hesitatingly began, "may I introduce you to my husband, Byron Sully? And please, just call him Sully, he happens not to like his first name too much." Turning to her husband, she said: "Sully, this is my mother, Elizabeth Quinn." Elizabeth Quinn looked at the young man and liked what she saw. "Welcome in my home, uhm... Sully," she took his outstretched hand and with his beautiful, deep voice heard him say: "Very pleased to meet you, Mrs Quinn," shaking her hand without squeezing it too much but not too little either.

An awkward silence followed. Elizabeth motioned them over to the wingback chairs and the sofa, breaking the silence by dryly commenting: "You did not tell me you had gotten married, Michaela. Is there a reason for such a fast wedding?" Michaela blushed, knowing her mother was insinuating that she might be pregnant. "No Mother, I know what you mean, but no, there is no reason whatsoever. Just the fact that neither Sully nor I wanted a grandiose wedding, so we were wedded on August 2nd by Sully's Indian brother, Cloud Dancing in a simple, but beautiful ceremony."

Elizabeth fell from one surprise in the other. "Indian brother?!" Looking at Sully, she decided that this handsome young man was not an Indian. Sully, deciding that it was time for him to speak up, told Elizabeth that his parents and grandparents, as well as his other ancestors, were close friends with the Cheyenne living in Colorado. When he had lost both parents at only ten years of age, he lived for many years on the Indian Reservation with the Cheyenne, who had succeeded in obtaining legal custody over him. "Michaela, are you lawfully married?" she enquired, afraid that her daughter might have fallen victim to some wedding scam. "Cloud Dancing is a Medicine Man, Mother, fully authorised to celebrate wedding ceremonies. I have known Sully since the first day I went to work at _St Catherine's Hospital_ and we were very soon convinced that we had a future together. So we decided not to wait but to make our union official." "And you think that three months is enough to get to know each other?" her mother humphed. "In our case, yes Mother. We believe it is enough."

She looked over at him and Sully looked at her. Their eyes locked and, as was usual for them, the rest of the world vanished. Elizabeth, watching them, was amazed by what she saw. There was no doubt that these two understood each other without words, that there was a connection that only few people had. She had to admit that he was a most pleasant young man, yet she was also curious to know what his position in the hospital was, because he did not strike her as being a man with a medical profession.

Deciding that it was best to get to the point straightaway, Elizabeth addressed Sully, asking him: "Tell me, Sully, what is your position in the hospital?" "I'm a maintenance engineer, Mrs Quinn," Sully truthfully answered, adding: "I take care of computers and all other, sometimes very complicated devices in the hospital, some of which are indispensable for saving the lives of the patients." Elizabeth fell silent, realising her assumption that Michaela was dating one of the young doctors, had been wrong. The fear that Sully would be what was commonly known as a _fortune hunter_ crossed her mind and she was adamant to get to the bottom of the reason why her youngest would have married this young man so shortly after making his acquaintance.

"Where are you living now, Michaela?" she asked her daughter. "Sully has a big house on the outskirts of Colorado Springs, Mother, a very beautiful, wooden house that dates back to the 19th century, built by one of Sully's ancestors. Sully has renovated it and it is an absolute joy to live in. There is no noise, and there are many acres of untouched land surrounding the house. I hope that you will soon come and visit us there, Mother, we have more than one guestroom and you are welcome to stay as long as you want. Nature in Colorado is magnificent, the view of the mountains in the distance is splendid and there are many other things worth visiting."

In the meantime, Michaela's other sisters had arrived, accompanied by their respective husbands. After the introductions, the family moved to the dining room. Marjorie couldn't keep her eyes off Sully. Seldom had she seen such a stunningly handsome chap, how on earth had her little sister managed to catch such a guy? And then the way they looked at each other, Marjorie just couldn't get over it. Her own husband, that cheating lout of an Everett, had never looked at her like that. Pangs of jealousy coursed through her mind. Michaela's two other sisters, Claudette and Maureen, though noticing that their youngest sister's husband was very pleasing to the eye, also had an inkling that he was far from being the young doctor their mother had made them believe their sister was dating. So who and, more intriguingly what, was he? He did look very distinguished in his three-piece suit, but from the way he behaved, they gathered that he did not occupy one of the high-ranking positions in that hospital way out in the West.

The three husbands, also having intuited that Sully was not one of their league, were courteous to him, but surely not friendly. They clearly made him feel that he was not one of them and never would be. Sully, on the other hand, stayed very close to Michaela, lending her his unconditional attention and support in this awkward confrontation with her family. He had sensed the obvious admiration of Marjorie, but also the rejection of her husband Everett, who was so imbibed with his own importance that Sully was glad he would never have to have anything to do with him. Claudette and Maureen's rejection, as well as the evident condescending attitude of their husbands, hardly touched him. For him, the most important person in this entire farce was his wife, his beloved Michaela, the love of his life. Her well-being was his first priority and that, he vowed there and then, would remain like that for the rest of his life.


	37. Chapter 37

**Chapter 37** \- _An interesting dinner - Quinn Residence - Boston_

Dinner was delicious, even though Sully cringed at the view of the tiny little bits and pieces served with each course, wondering how people could survive by just eating samples of food instead of a hearty meal. But then he thought of Michaela and the little portions she ate. In fact, he had always thought that she was too thin, yet she abounded with energy and never gave him the impression of being weak or in ill health. He sighed. Michaela, beside him, heard his sigh, so she leaned over and whispered: "Sully, are you all right?" He looked at her and smiled his broad, loving smile. "Yeah, I'm fine. So far we're managing quite well, aren't we?" "Absolutely. Do you like the food?" she teased him, knowing full well that he was not a great fan of this fancy food, served in small bites. Underneath the table, he touched her thigh, squeezing it and making her blush. Sitting opposite from her youngest sister at the table, Marjorie observed their interaction and was again possessed by an intense jolt of jealousy. This Sully character really bugged her, he was sexy to no end, my god, she wouldn't mind getting her hands on him somewhere in private... But no, her youngest sister had hauled him in, how the heck had she done that? Guys like him normally had ten girls at each finger. But then, looking at Michaela, Marjorie had to admit that she was a real beauty.

When they were younger, it had never struck her the way it struck her now. Yes, Michaela was stunning. And that Sully guy had certainly also seen that. Plus the fact that Michaela was rich. That combination was more than enough for any man to close an eye to any shortcomings the object of interest might have. But then, no, the way he looked at her, Marjorie did not see an expert fortune hunter in him. When he looked at her sister, it was written all over his face that he was totally smitten, head over heels in love... Marjorie was getting more and more worked up, now look at them, she thought, why was Michaela blushing, what on earth was he doing to her underneath the table, because one hand was not visible, so that must be why she was blushing, he was caressing her in some intimate spot, Marjorie was sure of it. The audacity of the guy! she almost burst out laughing at her own fantasies. She went on to imagine the two of them in private, but that was even worse, her jealousy flared up full force, shutting out the conversation at the table completely. She scolded herself and forced her mind to stop wondering about her sister and her hunk, listening once again to what the rest of the family was conversing about.

"Michaela," Elizabeth said, "are you staying with Rebecca or do you want to come and stay here, in your own room? Nothing has changed there since you left." "I'll stay here, Mother," Michaela answered, knowing for certain that her mother would want to have some more talks with her, but then in private. Marjorie giggled, thinking of Michaela's room. Although the bed in there was very spacious, it was not a real big double bed, more like a small double bed, it would be a tight fit... Mind you, they might just like it like that, Marjorie mused. Their glances spoke volumes to Marjorie, this was a couple who would be endlessly making love. She was more than amazed at her youngest sister. Never had she had any interest in boys or men, and then, out of the blue, here she shows up with a guy so sexy that Marjorie would give anything to have a fling with him. She heard Rebecca and Richard say that Michaela and Sully's carry-on bags were still in their car, Richard got up to fetch them. "I'll help you," Sully offered, glad that he could escape Marjorie's hot glances at him for a while.

Walking over to his car with Sully trailing him, Richard chuckled and asked him: "So how are you holding up under the barrage of questions fired at you?" "I'm all right," Sully said, "and so far Michaela is also doing quite well." Richard wanted to know a bit more about this young man who had conquered the heart of his sister-in-law, who had never had an interest in any man and therefore was very inexperienced where matters of the heart were concerned. Richard's greatest worry was that Sully would not be the right man for her, even though Richard had seen that the two of them were madly in love with each other. He still wanted to know some more. "Do you mind if I ask you a personal question, Sully?" he began. "Depends what you want to know, Richard," Sully answered, careful not to give away too much. "Well, it's about Michaela. She is very inexperienced where men are concerned. I'm sure you must have noticed that?" "Yeah, sure did," Sully laughed, "but then I have to confess that I know nothing of women either. Never was interested in starting any relationship. You know, I'm painfully shy." "You never had a girlfriend?" Richard could hardly believe this. This young man had the looks of an Adonis, and no girl had ever managed to lay her hands on him? "Went on a date or two, three, but it never worked out. These girls scared me more than that they attracted me, so nothing ever came of it." "So how did you meet Michaela?" Richard was really getting curious now.

He saw Sully blushing and wondered how these two had ever managed to come together. "It may sound silly, but I avoided her. When I first met her, being near her turned me into a stammering fool. I hated that feeling, so whenever she needed assistance with the equipment, I'd sent my friend Daniel to help her out, telling him that this new young doctor made me feel very uncomfortable. Michaela later told me that she was also attracted to me, so she started noticing that I never came to help her out and she asked Daniel about it. He told her I was too shy and that she made me feel like a fool, and then she told Daniel that she too felt like that. So Daniel set me up and pushed me to take Michaela for a walk. We went to a park, and had a good talk. We kissed and the rest is history." Sully fell silent.

Richard nodded. It all sounded very plausible. "But why did you two get married so quickly? You've hardly known each other three months, and here you already get married. Was there a special reason for that?" "Yeah, there was," Sully admitted, "that's a long story, but it's not what you think. I'll tell you when we have a bit more time. I think we should go back inside now, they might wonder where we are." Richard nodded and each taking a carry-on bag, they walked back inside. It crossed Richard's mind that he might ask Rebecca why Sully and Michaela got married so quickly, she would certainly know, since the two sisters had always been very close.

They left the bags in the hall, Harrison might take them up to Michaela's room or otherwise they would take them up themselves later on. From the dining room, the family had moved back to the parlour. The conversation had been animated, with a few rather nasty remarks from Claudette and Maureen, who just couldn't refrain from making Michaela feel that her choice of husband was far below their and, more particularly, her own station in life. Michaela had smiled at them, reminding them that it was her choice, her life, that she loved Sully and he loved her, so as far as she was concerned, there was no problem. Her sisters had argued that Sully could never provide her with the life she was used to, how come she could ever accept that? Michaela again had smiled at them. "You forget I am a doctor, I earn a very good salary and so does Sully. Together I think we can easily manage to live a comfortable life," she assured her sisters. "I never was one for exorbitant luxuries, as you may well remember, so I guess that living modestly will not be a problem for me." At that point, the husbands had deemed necessary to meddle in the conversation of their wives.

Claudette's husband, an investment banker, was the first to point out to Michaela that she was a very wealthy woman and that, in fact, she did not need to work at all. "Don't you think Sully is just interested in your money, Michaela?" he enquired, suspicion clearly written on his face. Michaela looked at him, "Sully is not interested in money, I can assure you that." "How do you know?" "I simply know, he told me so." "Did you see an attorney before marrying him?" "No, we didn't make a pre-nuptial agreement, if that is what you're thinking of. So now I own half of Sully's homestead and the surrounding land, and Sully owns half of my possessions. I tried to tell him what my possessions amount to, but he didn't want to know. Said money had never been of any interest to him."

At the mention of _land_, Claudette's husband dressed his ears. "How much land are we talking about?" he asked her. "I haven't got the faintest idea," Michaela confessed, "but it is a lot. The house is on the outskirts of Colorado Springs and once you get there, all you see is untouched natural land, acres and acres of it. Lots of trees, and somewhere, slightly downhill, there's even a creek that runs through it. Sully said it all once belonged to his ancestors, he inherited it from one of his aunts who made him promise never to split it up and sell it." She looked at the small group and politely warned them: "So I hope you will understand that there is nothing for you to worry about as far as my fortune and Sully's reasons for marrying me are concerned."

Maureen's husband had listened with great interest, interjecting his opinion: "But you cannot deny, Michaela, that the difference in lifestyle and upbringing, and there I mean the educational level, between you and your husband, is huge!" Michaela looked at him. Defending her husband, she said: "Sully is a computer specialist, he speaks fluently Cheyenne and is well-versed in any skills needed in this world to make a decent living. And just remember, all this is none of your business. When you married one of my sisters, it didn't cross my mind, not even for one second, to question their choice." With those words, she turned her back on them to go and find her mother, assuming that the latter was impatient to have a heart-to-heart talk about certain things with her as well.


	38. Chapter 38

**Chapter 38** \- _Discovery of a fair maiden's room - Quinn Residence - Boston_

Before joining her mother, Michaela went to look for Sully. She found him standing in the hall, talking with Richard, their two carry-on cases at his feet. "Sully!" she almost ran to him. He caught her in his arms, not minding Richard who chuckled at the sight of his sister-in-law's face, glowing with happiness to be in her husband's arms. "Okay, you two," he said, "I'm going to join my wife and other relatives, see you later!" leaving them to revel in each other's presence. "Let's go upstairs, I'll show you my room," Michaela urged, dying to be alone with him, she had missed him. Their hugging, touching and kissing was by far not enough to satisfy her longing for him. For Sully, the same feeling applied. He couldn't wait to rip his wife's clothes off her, to be skin-to-skin with her, to make love with her over and over again, showing her in all possible ways how much she meant to him. He picked up the two cases and they quickly walked upstairs.

Michaela opened the door to her room. Sully looked around, awed at the apparent luxury that met his eye. The room was spacious, there was another door, which, Sully supposed, was leading to a private bathroom. The furniture was magnificent, the heavy, velvety curtains of a splendid burgundy colour and the bed was big enough for the two of them, he ascertained with a broad grin, anticipating the pleasure they would bring each other this same evening, hoping those moments would come soon. He was on edge, he longed for her, he needed her so badly, it almost hurt. In the privacy of her room, their kisses soon got so deep that they had a hard time to stop from having a _quickie_ there and then.

"Sully, do you realise you are the first man who is not a relative of mine to ever set foot in my room?" Michaela giggled. "Really?" he said, stunned at her words. "Mm-mmm," she murmured, "but after all, you _are_ family now, you're my husband, lawfully and legally mine, for the rest of my life..." she whispered, looking into his eyes, drowning in the ocean blue hue and the love these eyes held for her. "It's a beautiful room," he huskily responded, "I'm honoured to share it with you for the coming nights. Do we really have to return downstairs?" he enquired, "I can hardly wait to be alone with you, I've been missing you all day." Michaela giggled. "You've been around me all day, what are you talking about?" she provoked him to be more specific.

Of course he instantly fell in her trap. "Lemme explain this to you, my gorgeous wife... I miss you in the nude, I miss making love with you, I miss making you see the stars, I miss you making me see the stars... reaching paradise together..." Michaela almost melted, she felt her knees become weak, if she had not been holding on so tightly to him, she would have crumbled to the floor. "Oh Sully," she panted, "we'll have to be patient some more time, I have to go down and speak to Mother, or she will come up here to my room." "I come with you," Sully promised, "we'll get through this talk with your mother together, let's go." And with those words, they descended the stairs, looking for Mrs Elizabeth Quinn for the ominous talk with the matriarch of the family.


	39. Chapter 39

**Chapter 39** \- _A mother-daughter talk - a husband's support - Quinn Residence - Boston _

Mrs Elizabeth Quinn was in the parlour, surrounded by four daughters and their husbands. She was impatient for her youngest to come and see her, convinced that Michaela knew full well she needed to explain quite a few things to her mother. When Michaela and Sully stepped inside the parlour, Elizabeth looked up and loudly announced to all persons present: "I have some things to discuss in private with Michaela, so will you all please excuse me? Michaela, would you please come with me to the library?" Standing up, she preceded her daughter, assuming that Sully character would have the decency to keep clear from her and Michaela.

Unfortunately, that _Sully character_ had no intention whatsoever to let his beloved wife, his Michaela, go through this ordeal all by herself, so he bluntly followed the two women to the library. Noticing that he was behind them, Elizabeth turned around and huffed: "Please leave us alone, Mr Sully, this is between my daughter and myself." Hardly intimidated, Sully responded: "Your daughter happens to be my wife, Mrs Quinn, and there is nothing in the world that can stop me from being by her side when I know she needs me there." Michaela looked at her mother, who was not at all amused at Sully's refusal. Elizabeth, realising that this young man had a mind of his own, did not want to get caught up in a discussion and, shrugging her shoulders, continued to the library, sitting down in one of the comfortable wingback chairs. Michaela took a seat in the chair opposite her mother and Sully, intent on supporting Michaela, sat on the armrest, encircling his wife's shoulder, gently squeezing it to indicate his support.

Elizabeth cleared her throat and began. "Michaela, you do realise that I do not like it at all that you did not tell me about your marriage and, even less, do I appreciate that you did not do it in a proper way. But I understand that things have been done in such a way that you both wished for, so I cannot do anything about that. The other thing is that I would very much like to know, what made you two get married so quickly? To say it clearly, Michaela, I understood that there is no urgent reason such as an unforeseen pregnancy?" Michaela looked up at Sully, who, in turn, looked down at her. Silently they discussed into how much detail they would go to explain the speed at which they had decided to get married. To Michaela's questioning gaze, Sully simply said: "Just tell your mom what happened to us, Michaela." Fully agreeing with her husband, Michaela began to tell the story of meeting the love of her life.

"We met at the hospital, Mother. From the first moment we laid eyes on each other, something happened to us both that, until now, we cannot explain. It was as if we recognised each other, as if the world around us vanished and we were silently speaking with each other. We both felt it and, when we shook hands at being introduced to each other, it was as if we were struck by lightning." While she was telling this, from time to time Sully nodded his approval that it had happened like this. "Soon, we were very comfortable with each other, spending as much time together as we could, getting to know each other real well, so you can imagine that being so deeply in love, I offered Sully to go on the pill to avoid what you just mentioned, Mother, an unforeseen pregnancy."

Michaela fell silent, thinking of the times they had been kissing, almost losing control of themselves, aching to physically join their bodies in an ultimate celebration of their deeply anchored feelings of love. Looking at her mother, who was listening intently to her daughter's detailed account of the events leading up to her more or less _impromptu_ marriage to this Mr Sully, Michaela continued: "So when Sully told me that he thought that taking the pill was not such a good idea, he proposed to me, giving me this ring." She stretched out her hand, so that her mother could admire the splendid, very original engagement ring that Sully had given her at that occasion. Elizabeth had noticed the ring previously and concluded that it was, indeed, very special.

At this moment Sully cut in. "The ring, as well as the wedding ring, date back to the 1870s. My ancestor, the first Byron Sully, had them made especially for his wife, who was one of the first woman doctors in the West. These rings always remained in my family and were bequeathed to me by the same aunt who left me the homestead and the land surrounding it." Surprised, Michaela looked up at her husband. "You never told me she was a doctor?" "You never asked," he responded jokingly, at the same time smiling his loving smile at her.

For the past few hours, at various moments, Elizabeth had remarked the absolutely astonishing complicity between her daughter and this Mr Sully. Slowly but surely, she felt she was changing her opinion on this young man. She had, from the beginning, had to admit to herself that he was very handsome, none of her other sons-in-law could hold a candle to him, but on the other hand, she feared that with those looks, he might turn out to be something of a womanizer, or worse, a drinker, not to speak of the risk that, aware of Michaela's fortune, he was also very keen on laying his hands on that... Elizabeth sighed. She knew how inexperienced Michaela was where men and relationships were concerned. Luckily this was her fifth and last daughter, there would be no more suitors she would have to worry about in the near future and, for her granddaughters, they would have their own parents to worry about them...

Silence reigned in the library, they were lost in their own thoughts. So far, Sully mused, the talk was going rather well. He did not feel any unrest in Michaela's demeanour, and he himself felt quite at peace with his newly acquainted mother-in-law. "Mother," he heard Michaela break the silence, "is there anything else you would like to know?" "Yes, there is, but it can wait. It is getting late and, if I am not mistaken, you two had to get up very early to catch your flight. I propose we all retire to bed. Breakfast starts at seven o'clock, for those who want an early start. By the way, do you have any plans for tomorrow?" "Yes, Mother, I would like to take Sully on a round trip of Boston, to show him all the places that have a special meaning for me. Would you like to come with us?" "That's very kind of you to offer, Michaela, but no, thank you, I'd rather stay quietly here at home and besides, in the afternoon I am invited at Mrs Lewis' house with a few other friends, for afternoon tea." And with those words, she got up and made for the door. Michaela and Sully also stood up and followed her.

Inside the parlour, Elizabeth took leave of her other daughters and husbands, wishing them all a good night and thanking them for having come over for dinner. "Please feel free to join us again tomorrow night," she invited them, "Michaela will leave soon again, so please take this opportunity to see your sister and get to know her new husband." She turned and went upstairs. "Well," Rebecca took the lead, "that was a very pleasant evening, all together. I wish you all a good night and hope to see you again tomorrow."

Marjorie walked over to Michaela and Sully. "Guess you newlyweds are off to bed as well?" she sultrily said, her eyes twinkling with hidden understanding. Sully chuckled. How different was this sister from his wife! This Marjorie reminded him of the eager females he had been on a date with, how they had scared him no end with their bold advances, trying to awaken feelings in him that he was unable to feel for them. He now knew that all these years, these feelings had been lying in waiting, to be awoken by one woman, his _hesta-noo'otse_, his _heartsong,_ his _'Chaela,_ the one woman who was to become the love of his life in a matter of minutes after meeting her...

Michaela, slightly embarrassed at her sister's behaviour, looked at Sully. Observing the amused expression in his eyes, her embarrassment subsided. Smiling her radiant smile at her sister, she jokingly responded: "Well, yes, Marjorie, you're right, as you know, we got up very, very early to catch our flight, so yes, I think we'll be heading up to my room right now. Have a good night, all of you!" she called out to the remaining sisters and brothers-in-law, who nodded at hearing her _good night_ wish. Sully, all too glad that he would finally be alone with his passionate lover to engage in their delicious daily dallying, followed Michaela out of the parlour and up the stairs.

Watching her from behind in her exquisite Chanel suit, her forms so delicate and perfect, he already felt his arousal coming on, the anticipation of what he was going to do to her slender body, made his heartbeat speed up and his blood race through his veins. On top of the stairs, he stopped Michaela, softly asking: "Where's your mom's bedroom?" Michaela, not fully understanding why her husband would like to know where to find her mother's bedroom, silently pointed to a door at the far end of the corridor. All of a sudden it struck her why her virile husband would ask such a thing. He was worrying about being overheard! The butterflies in her belly started a dance of their own, she felt tingles all over her body and, inside of her, the throbbing and pulsating that had already started some time ago, became even more intense, when she imagined herself in her room, in her bed, with her fully naked husband on top of her...

Downstairs, the three remaining sisters, having been abandoned by their husbands who had taken refuge in the library to pour themselves a few drinks, were discussing the newlyweds. "My gosh," Marjorie lamented, "men like this Sully should be forbidden. I've had the hots all over me from the moment I saw him." Claudette and Maureen, shocked at hearing her bold words, looked at her. "Marjorie! You don't mean you would fall for such an uncouth chap?" "I surely wouldn't throw him out of my bed," Marjorie confessed, continuing: "For Pete's sake, don't you see how stunningly sexy this guy is? Didn't you notice how devastatingly handsome he is? His broad shoulders, the way he walks, the way he looks at our sister? Are you blind?!" Maureen looked at Claudette. "Our sister definitely is over-sexed, Claudette." And, sternly, addressing Marjorie, she said: "Marjorie, pull yourself together, you're a disgrace to our family, talking like that." Marjorie huffed, thinking she would love to be a fly on the wall in Michaela's bedroom, intensely jealous of her youngest sister.


	40. Chapter 40

**Chapter 40** \- _Nights in white satin - Quinn Residence - Boston_

Upstairs, in Michaela's room, Sully and Michaela were in the process of beating the world record for the quickest undressing of two lovers, followed by setting another world record for the quickest _quickie_ in the world... They were crazy with longing for each other, needing each other so badly, they skipped any foreplay, all they knew was to join, to join as fast and as furious as possible, to make love with a frenzy, so far unheard of between them. Assuming that Mrs Quinn, at the end of the corridor, was unable to hear them, they let themselves go completely, giving in to all their primeval urges, not trying to stifle any cries, screeches or grunts of sheer marital bliss. For Michaela, making love with Sully in her childhood bedroom was so exciting, that she nearly lost it. Her mind went completely blank, all her instincts were kicking in, loving her gorgeous husband the only thing she was focussing on, giving him pleasure, making him happy, was all she could think of. Sully, in turn, was awed by the fact that he was, again, the first man in her room, not only had he made love with her for the first time, this also was a _first_, a very beautiful first, a first that he would never forget.

They violently came over the edge, panting and sweating they tried to get back to normal. "Did we just beat some world records?" Michaela stammered, still relishing the feelings her husband had pleasured her with. "I'm sure we're the record holders now, can't imagine anybody beating us to this," he chuckled, softly biting her nipple, making her sigh with delight. Sully got up, "Gotta go to the bathroom," he sheepishly announced. Michaela nodded, "The door over there, that's the bathroom." "Yeah, gathered as much," he responded. He got up and disappeared inside the bathroom.

Intent on pleasing him some more, Michaela walked over to her chest of drawers and, from under a pile of garments, pulled out an exquisite white satin robe. Putting it on, she saw that it still fit her perfectly, accentuating all her forms. She was certain that Sully's eyes would almost pop out of their sockets when he saw her in this alluring garment, not to speak of any other bodily reaction he would certainly have, seeing her in this flimsy robe. Giggling, her mind flashed back to the occasion at which this robe had been given to her, and the many years it had lain in the drawer for lack of male eyes to feast upon it...

Finished in the bathroom, Sully emerged, intending to ask his stunning wife to have one of those divine showers with him to wash off all the perspiration caused by their _quickie_. Looking over to where she was standing near her chest of drawers, he almost choked. The vision in front of him was of such magnificence, he could not utter one word. In the suffused light of the room, she was a heavenly creature. The robe was tight fitting, and, knowing the paradisiacal body that it was hiding, he was instantly aroused, the effort made during their _quickie_ immediately compensated by what his eyes met at this very moment.

Michaela could not help but see his reaction, a feeling of intense pride washed over her, was she so alluring? She had never thought of herself as being beautiful but, lately, under Sully's admiring glances and experiencing his deep devotion to her, she understood that she was in fact not bad to look at... Silently she thanked mother nature for granting her this privilege. Gazing at her husband, she sent up another prayer of thanks to that same mother nature, for blessing her with such a stunningly handsome husband. He was built like a Greek god, she thought. She remembered seeing a statue of Apollo, or that one of Michelangelo, the _David_ in Florence, which were, according to all experts, the personification of the perfect male body, but she had to admit that her Sully was just as gorgeous, if not even more gorgeous...

"Do you like it?" Michaela asked. "Like it?" Sully stammered, "I adore it, you simply l-look... out of this world... I've never seen anything more beautiful." Flattered by his words and the way he devoured her with his eyes, she walked over to him, and, rubbing herself against his arousal, making him groan with pleasure, she proposed: "Shall we go have a short shower?" Squirming from pure lust, he nodded. A shower together was always a highlight, they splashed and washed, touched and kissed, caressing each other in all the spots they knew would excite the other no end. This time was no exception, they ignited their passion with endless love and devotion... After the short, but intense shower, towelling themselves dry, Sully left the bathroom, commenting: "See you in a while," giving her some time alone to prepare for what they both knew was going to happen next.

Michaela giggled. She took out some perfume to make herself smell even nicer than usual and decided to put on the robe once more. If this was such a sight for him, she did not want to deprive him of it. Walking out of the bathroom, she saw him sprawled out on her bed, his majestic manhood standing straight up, waiting for her to do with it as she pleased. And that was exactly what she had in mind, her intention was to touch and caress him, his entire body, her excitement rose to unmeasurable heights, just by looking at him, being fully aroused. Sleep could wait, she contemplated, they could sleep-in the next morning, nothing urgent was awaiting them. Slowly approaching the bed, Sully, once more, was speechless. This delicious creature floating towards him, was _his wife_, marrying her was one of the most extraordinary things that had ever happened to him in his entire life, he mused...

She walked over to the CD player and started it. Sully recognised the song. Moody Blues, _Nights in white satin_, one of his favourites. The music played softly in the background, creating an atmosphere of peace and quiet, of endless love and devotion to each other. Without shedding her robe, she lay down beside him, her hand moving down to caress him, revelling not only at the smoothness of his member, but also at its stiffness, reminding her of a stone. Amazing, how flesh and blood could cooperate to produce an organ that could bring so much pleasure...

_"'Chaela, you're killing me, you know that?"_ Sully stuttered, getting more and more excited at the vision his wife made in this bewitching garment with that enchanting music in the background. "You do the same to me, Sully," she jokingly scolded him, "lying like this, in all your glory, on my bed, in my virginal bedroom, what do you think that does to me?" "D'you realise we've hardly been married one week?" he asked her.

Michaela did some thinking. "Good heavens, you're right!" she called out, absolutely flabbergasted that just one week ago she was still a scared virgin, fearing that her first time with Sully would be a disaster, that he would be disappointed with her. "You still don't regret to have married me?" he mocked her. "Regret? Is never going to happen, don't you ever count on it," she warned him, continuing: "...and in that week, you have opened the doors of heaven for me." "You took me along to paradise," Sully countered, fondling her breast and nipple through the thin fabric of her robe, reflecting that, on the one hand, he wanted to take it off her, but on the other hand, wanting to leave it on, it was exciting to see her forms being so splendidly outlined by the silky material.

Untying the bow keeping the robe closed in the front, he spread it to fall to both sides, baring her breasts. Leaning down, he started to work her nipples, eliciting all those small sounds of pleasure from her, feeling her excitement. He continued to suckle her nipples, alternating between the two of them, but at the same time, his hand moved down to her centre. With male pride, he felt how excited she was. She really was exceptional, he mused and decided there and then to always make her happy.

Michaela, feeling once more his hot breath on her body, was almost ready to come over the edge. The sight of her naked husband in his fully aroused state, had not failed to violently turn her on so much, that she almost could not hold back. _"Okay, here we go then,"_ he croaked, entering her smoothly, continuing to massage her centre with his fingers. _"Oh Sullyyy! Yeeesss! Yeeesss!"_ she hissed, floating on a cloud of pleasure, her obvious response to his ministrations pleasing him so intensely, that he barely could hold back. Once she came down from her heigh, he started his movements, keeping a slow pace at first, trying to make it last. Feeling that his climax was imminent, he stilled to calm down...

"Wanna calm down a bit," he murmured, "this feels so good, 'Chaela, I've been longing for this all day, it was hard not to be able to sneak off with you to some place private and have a good go at each other." "Hmm, I know what you mean, the hours are long if we can't make love when we feel like it," Michaela agreed. "We have the same problem at work, remember making love in my office? That was quite exciting also," she reminded him. "Gotta be careful when we're back," he warned her, "we could get fired over a tryst like that." "Yes, I know, but it's not easy to bend our longing and to have to wait until we're finally at home." "You imagine living in an apartment?" Sully joked, "Having neighbours listening to us?" "Oh no, don't speak of that!" she laughed out loud. "I was greatly embarrassed when Daniel visited us and we were both in the nude!" "You should have seen Daniel's face when I opened the door," Sully chuckled, "he understood of course, think he was a bit jealous of the fun we have together." "Fun it sure is," she agreed, relishing being joined, being one with him.

These were the most intense moments of her entire life, never would she forget the difference Sully had made for her, all her dreams had come true, even better than she had ever been able to imagine. "Want me to continue?" he asked, taking her lips for a deep kiss. Pushing her hips up, she signalled that she was ready to continue. He resumed his thrusts, slow, then a little bit faster, until he could hold on no longer and his urges became so strong, that he had to increase the pace to bring them both to these intense peaks, the ones they enjoyed and which they knew they would enjoy for so many more years to come.

Coming over the edge with a few loud grunts, Sully dropped his head beside hers, these encounters truly were more than he ever had dreamed they would be. He kissed her neck, her smooth, silky skin was enough to drive him crazy. It would only take a few minutes, he knew, before he would be ready for an _encore_ performance. But tomorrow they wanted to go on this round tour of Boston, they should get some sleep now. He yawned, wondering how his lovely wife was feeling. "You all right?" he mumbled. "Yes, no problem here, tired but happy." "Let's try to get some sleep then," he proposed. "Mmm, good idea." "'Chaela?" he began. "Yes?" she countered. "If during the night you have... uhm... urges, don't hesitate to signal them to me, right? I love being woken up for another round of lovemaking," he assured her. "I'll keep your wishes in mind, Mr Sully," she promised him. _How, oh how, did I ever get so lucky?_ she couldn't help but wonder for the umpteenth time...

By now, they decided it was time to go to sleep. Michaela got up for a short visit to the bathroom, and, walking back to the bed, she shed the robe which was still hanging from her shoulders, before moving in with her husband. He immediately took her in his arms and, tightly entwined, it didn't take long for them to fall asleep. Michaela needed some more time than Sully and, when she heard his regular breathing, she felt marvellously happy and at peace. Her husband's arms was the best place to be, she mused, relaxing and dozing off too.


	41. Chapter 41

**Chapter 41** \- _A husband's dream - Quinn Residence - Boston _

When dawn was breaking, Michaela awoke. Sully's body heat was enormous, like the other morning, she stuck out her leg to cool off. Heeding his words, she pondered what she was going to do now. Was he dreaming of her, getting all aroused again, or was he at peace, resting after their intense, but highly effective lovemaking of last night? She moved her hand down to his centre. His member was not hard, but not flaccid either. It was in some intermediate state, waiting for her to stroke it, making it stiffen again.

Still in deep sleep, Sully was aware of a familiar sensation. It began slowly, moving around the edges of his dreams. Suddenly he was wide awake, feeling the contours of his wife's lips on his, pulling at him to respond to her request for intimacy. He was more than pleased that she was acting upon her urges, just like he had requested her to do. To be woken up in this way, was every man's dream, he knew from some talks with his married friends. "You sure?" he murmured, fully turned on by her loving touches. Was she really excited again? He moved his hand down to her centre to check. No doubt, she was, as usual, ready for him...

Would there ever come a moment when she wasn't ready to make love?! "Yes, sure," she whispered, not hesitating one moment to oblige her husband. "_Quickie_ or a long one?" he enquired, "Madam can have it any ole' way she wants it," poking fun at her. She laughed, "Oh Sully! Are we crazy?! What is happening to us?" He chuckled. "Nothing is happening, we just happen to be madly in love, we've just discovered this amazing thing called _lovemaking_ and we're fully committed to try out all there is to know about it," he explained their madness to her. "Well, in that case, Mr Sully, please take me up on this commitment and let me see the stars," she invited him to begin their morning _madness_, "no need for a _quickie_, we have plenty of time, breakfast only starts at seven in my Mother's household," she informed him of Madam's wishes.

Tenderly they made love, and, as if it were the first time, he marvelled at the sensations this union with her provoked in his body and mind. His slow movements felt heavenly to both, they forgot about the world around them, they were somewhere in a universe where they were alone, alone with their love, alone with their longing for each other. Fleetingly she conceded that marrying Sully had been the right thing to do, the fact that they had not known each other for a prolonged period of time, seemed of no importance. The chemistry between them was so strong, she knew it would outlive time.

In the meantime, Sully was having a good time pleasing not only his beloved wife, but also himself, moving slowly, she didn't want a _quickie_, and neither did he. Even though a _quickie_ had its charm, making it last was even better. He acknowledged that their connection was getting more and more physical. Marriages based on just physical intimacy were bound to fail. He vowed there and then that, as of this instant, he would start working on their spiritual connection. He already knew that they had a lot in common, but there were still a few subjects where they did not agree. These had to be addressed and resolved, otherwise they wouldn't be able to make it work.

While having these thoughts, he had continued to caress her centre and, when he heard her whisper the familiar _almost there_, he set a faster pace, increasing the rhythm of his movements. The somewhat stifled screech told him she was coming over the edge, careful not to make too much noise. Like always, knowing that she reached her peak, felt like heaven to him, he gave her the time she needed to ride the waves of pleasure and, once she calmed down, he let himself go and increased the speed of his thrusts, feeling that he too was racing towards his release. He also took care to stifle his grunts, but could not avoid them completely. _"Arrrggghhh, arrrggghhh,"_ he went, when his peak hit him. His body convulsed a few times, _"Heaven,"_ he panted, _"'Chaela, simply heaven..."_ The heat of their bodies and the early hour of the morning, made them doze off once more, their bodies remaining joined together, until he went soft and slipped out of her.

Some time later, they woke up. "Did it really happen or have I been dreaming?" he softly asked her. Michaela giggled at her husband's joke. "It really happened, Sully, and it was more than lovely, thank you so much." "It's me who thanks you," he mumbled, "did I already tell you how much I love you?" "That was quite some time ago," she quipped, "maybe you stopped loving me?" "That, Mrs Sully, will never happen. Don't you ever dare have such monstrous thoughts!" They laughed, their love was omnipresent, they let themselves go into this harbour of love, they were home together, and home was there, where at any given moment they would be. He was her home and she was his home. They silently understood each other and his fears that their love would be governed too much by the physical aspect, soon dissipated in the view of their amazing _entente_.

In the meantime, it was getting time to get dressed and go down for breakfast. Elizabeth Quinn was up and about, sitting at the breakfast table, reading her favourite newspaper, the _Boston Globe_. Looking up, she smiled at them, at the same time noticing what an extraordinary handsome couple they made. Hand in hand, their faces radiated happiness, Elizabeth mused that she had seldom seen her youngest so delighted and contented. Again she was struck by the good looks of Mr Sully, which reminded her that she was not yet through with her questions to understand more of his motivations to marry her youngest...


	42. Chapter 42

**Chapter 42** \- _Thursday, August 11, 2005 - Breakfast - Quinn Residence - Boston _

Michaela and Sully sat down and, both ravenous, started heaping their plates with food. Inwardly, Elizabeth had to laugh. She may well have her bedroom at the end of the corridor, but there was nothing wrong with her hearing. It filled her with great satisfaction to have overheard that at least in the realm of intimacy, her daughter was just as _enthusiastic_ as she had been as a young bride with her beloved Josef. That this Mr Sully knew his way with women, did also not surprise her, with his looks, he must have had more than enough experiences with women to assure her daughter a healthy love life. Little did she know that very soon she would find out how wrong her assumption had been, again...

Seeing them eat with so much appetite, Elizabeth couldn't refrain from saying how happy she was to see that they did her breakfast so much justice. Michaela almost choked on her orange juice, blushing pink, for she had understood very well what her mother was insinuating. Thinking of the distance between her own and her mother's room, Michaela almost panicked when the thought crossed her mind that her mother might have overheard them. If at all possible, her blush turned even a few shades darker, more crimson than pink. Sully, seeing his wife's blush, wondered what was the matter. He was not yet initiated into the silent language between mother and daughter, so with raised eyebrows, he looked at Michaela. "Tell you later," she whispered to him. Elizabeth smiled at her daughter and nodded her approval. This couple understood each other with hardly a word. This augured well for their future.

In an attempt to give Michaela some time to overcome her panic, Elizabeth addressed Sully. "So tell me, Mr Sully, how do you like being married?" "Mother!" Michaela exclaimed, horrified at what she esteemed to be extremely rude. "What?" her mother asked with a look of innocence on her face. "That is a very personal question, Mother, I do not think Sully appreciates that," Michaela tried to tell her mother off. Sully chuckled, "Don't worry, Michaela, I don't mind that question. To be honest, Mrs Quinn, I have never dreamed that being married would be so wonderful." "Well, surely your previous girlfriends must have given you an idea?" Elizabeth pushed on. "Girlfriends?" Sully asked, now at a loss what she was getting at, "there were no girlfriends. Michaela is the first woman I ever fell in love with. You see, I'm painfully shy, and girls and women scared me more than I can tell you."

Elizabeth could hardly believe this. Such an Adonis would never have had an affair of any kind? Incredulous, she looked at Michaela. "I can hardly believe this, Michaela, is this true?" Michaela giggled, "Yes Mother, it is. Hank Lawson, the owner of _the Gold Nugget_, the hotel where I took a room when I arrived in Colorado Springs, told me about Sully and his wood carving skills. At the same time, he also told me that Sully was what he called a funny guy, because he never saw him with a girl. Hank even tried to organise some girl for Sully, but Sully refused." She fell silent. Sully was flabbergasted. "Hank told you that?!" Michaela nodded, "Yes, Hank told me about you the day I arrived in Colorado Springs, when he showed me my room in his hotel and I admired the furniture with the splendid wood carvings." Pausing a few moments, directly addressing her mother, Michaela continued: "Later on, Daniel, Sully's best friend and colleague, confirmed what Hank had told me."

Elizabeth sighed. "So this is the second time I was completely wrong in my assessment of you, Mr Sully. Please forgive me, I am glad we are having this conversation to set things right once and for all." Sully smiled at her. _A smile that would make any woman melt on the spot,_ Elizabeth couldn't help but think. This young man had the most beautiful blue eyes she had ever seen, she thought. She saw more and more why her youngest daughter had fallen head over heels in love with him. "What else were you wrong about, Mother?" Michaela asked. "Well, when you told me you were dating someone from work, I assumed it to be one of the other young doctors. Until now, I even didn't know that hospitals had maintenance engineers, but thinking of it, I realise that they must have such engineers of course, with all the sophisticated equipment one finds nowadays in hospitals, it is clear that those special devices need specialists to take care of defaults and failures." "It is life-saving equipment," Michaela softly said. "Do you understand now, Mother, why I gave you no further details about Sully? I knew you would disapprove of him, so I wanted you to meet him so that you could make up your mind about him when you would have met him in person." She did not say it, but her mother knew that Michaela thought _and to see what a wonderful man he is. _

Elizabeth knew she still had one subject she wanted to discuss with Sully, and that was the subject of Michaela's fortune. Yet for the time being, she decided to leave it be, knowing Michaela and Sully wanted to go on a round tour through Boston, these financial matters could wait one more day. "Are you still going on this tour you mentioned yesterday?" she asked no one in particular. "Yes," they both said at the same time. Laughing out loud, Michaela sniggered: "Shall we go, Mr Sully?" "Much obliged, Mrs Sully, I'm all yours." The _double entendre_ was not lost on Elizabeth and she felt a wave of happiness engulfing her, hearing her daughter laugh so delightfully with her new husband was pure joy.

As a child, Michaela had never been a very joyous girl, she was always serious and, being so smart and bright, she hardly had made any friends. Luckily there had been Miriam, but apart from her, Elizabeth could not remember any more close friends. That Michaela now had found a companion with whom she apparently had many moments full of laughter, filled her heart with sympathy for this young man. "Have you two had enough breakfast?" she enquired. They smiled at her, "Yes we have, Mother, thank you," Michaela replied, while Sully just nodded, and, hand in hand, they left the breakfast table to go upstairs to fetch a few things before setting out on an exploratory trip through Boston. Sully was looking forward to see all the sights that held a special place in Michaela's heart. Everything concerning her youth was of interest to him, the more he found out, the more he loved her.

Up in Michaela's room, as always irresistibly drawn to each other, they crashed in a tight embrace, seeking their lips for a fiery kiss, which they felt to be long overdue. Pulling back, Sully looked into her eyes, saying: "How're you holding up, Michaela?" "So far it's going better than I expected, but careful, there is still one hot topic that Mother has not yet broached." "What's that?" "Money," Michaela said. "I guess Mother is going to ask you if you know how important my fortune is, if we have had a pre-nuptial agreement drawn up, how you are going to provide for me, if you intend to use any of my money, and all other things that have to do with finance. We can do two things: obediently answer all her questions or plainly tell her that it is none of her business." Sully chuckled, "How d'you reckon you're gonna do that? As far as I can see, your mother will not appreciate it if you tell her it's none of her business!" "So you think we should just bow and give her all the information she wants?" "I think that is our best option." "Okay, no problem as far as I'm concerned," Michaela conceded. His lips were so inviting, "Sully, kiss me?" she implored, realising that she would love to have a _quickie_ with him again, at the same time scolding herself for being so obsessed with making love with him.

As the kiss deepened, Sully got more and more aroused. Noticing her fiery response, he whispered: "Michaela, how about a _quickie_ before setting out to roam the town?" "Oh Sully, can you read my mind? I just thought the same, but then I thought I was being ridiculous, we can't make love so often, don't you think we're exaggerating it?" "Don't know about exaggeration, I just know what I feel, so... yes or no?" "Yes, of course," her voice was getting hoarse with anticipation. Walking over to the door, Sully turned the key to make sure no one would come and interrupt their three-minute tryst. "Take off just your jeans," she whispered, getting more and more excited. He undid the button and dropped all, boxers included. Tugging at her jeans, she helped him push them down, panties included. Sitting down on the chair, Sully motioned her to straddle him, trusting she would be as ready as usual, he did not bother to check. He chuckled when he felt how smoothly she slid down on him, his intuition proven right.

They both deeply sighed at the feelings joining their bodies was provoking, this was too good for words. How heavenly was each of their unions, they thought. Michaela felt her inner walls being stimulated to bring her the pleasure she always felt when they were making love this way, she being on top of him. Sully moved one hand down to massage her centre, knowing that it wouldn't take long for her to come over the edge. He himself would follow immediately after her, since her contractions would excite him so much that he would be unable to hold back. At her now becoming characteristic _almost there_, she increased the pace of her movements and, trying to stifle her screech, she reached her peak. It was, once again, sheer bliss and, also trying to keep his voice low, his repeated grunts of _arrrggghhh,_ were no more than a whisper.

Michaela let her head drop on his shoulder. "Sully, this is heaven, even if just a _quickie_, it's still wonderful..." she mumbled close to his ear, trying to get her breath back. Sully chuckled. "You're amazing, Michaela, I've said it before, but you're every man's dream. I've never heard of such a passionate lover, it seems to me that none of my friends have what we have..." "Maybe Hank, with all his lady friends, he might have an idea of what deep love means," Michaela pondered. "Hank?! No way, he just has women to satisfy his sexual appetite, I've never seen Hank in love," Sully informed her. "I hope one day he finds what we have," she mused, continuing: "same for Daniel, it could well be that he is a bit jealous of what we have... I know Marjorie is envious of us, I saw the way she looked at you, if glances could undress, you'd've been walking around naked at quite a few occasions yesterday..." Sully burst out in a loud laugh. "Michaela! You're priceless! Where does all this come from? My _prim_ and _proper_ lady doc making such saucy suggestions!" Michaela too burst out in a fit of giggles, waves of happiness rolled over them, Sully squeezed her to him, the fact that they were still connected, all the more precious to him. Softening, he reached over to the nearby desk, pulling a few tissues from the box and handing them to her. Motioning with his head to the bathroom, Michaela agreed that it was time to do some cleaning up...


	43. Chapter 43

**Chapter 43** \- _Thursday, August 11, 2005 - Round tour through Boston_

Clean and refreshed, they walked down the stairs. Peeking her head around the door of the parlour, Michaela announced to her mother that they were off on their round tour through town. "What time will you be back home, Mother?" Michaela innocently asked, envisioning that she would like to return home in the afternoon for a nap with her beloved husband, a nap plus maybe something else, so her mother's absence would be more than welcome. Elizabeth Quinn, with all those years of experience in human relations and, especially, human sexuality, could read Michaela's thoughts flawlessly and, wishing to give her youngest free rein in the delicious amorous banter with her husband, she just as innocently answered: "I'll be back quite late, Michaela, I will leave here by two o'clock and I think I will be back by six o'clock, just in time to receive our invitees for dinner." "Well, then have a nice time, Mother, and please, do give my greetings to Mrs Lewis?" And with those words she turned to Sully, who had been listening to the mother-daughter talk, taking his hand and heading for the door.

Of all her exploratory rambles in Boston in the past, this one, hand-in-hand with Sully, was one of the best, Michaela thought. All the places of her youth came to life. Sully was mesmerised by her lively tales of all sorts of events that had taken place at each specific spot. Even the frequent mention of her father did not render Michaela as sad as she used to get when going to familiar places. They often stopped walking to embrace and kiss, being so close just awakened their need to feel the other, to be assured of their love, to express how much the other meant for them... For coffee, Michaela took Sully to a small tearoom which she remembered as having excellent coffee and especially tasty pastries.

Sully let it all wash over him, being at her side was all he wanted, revelling in the love he felt for her, secure in the knowledge that she loved him just as much. Their frequent stops for a cuddle, was most welcome too. He was surprised at himself how much he needed to touch her, to feel her responsiveness. He had been alone for most of his life, the fact that now he had his _heartsong_ by his side, was something he had never believed would come true. In a certain way, his reliance on her scared him, what would he do if she would ever decide to leave him? He shuddered at the mere thought, knowing that he would be totally lost without her...

For lunch, Michaela took him to the very well-known restaurant _Ocean Prime_. From the interior decoration, Sully gathered that prices would be more than he was used or willing to spend on a lunch. Michaela watched his expression, correctly reading his thoughts, so soothingly she said: "My treat, please, Sully?" Looking into her imploring eyes, he could not refuse and nodded his approval. "For this time, Mrs Sully, but let's not make a habit of that, I simply can't afford this type of expenditure," he stated. "Thank you, Sully, I won't make a habit of it, just when it is a special occasion, like this one." "You already had that crazy idea with the Business Class tickets," he reminded her. "Well," she countered, "that was a special occasion, don't you think so? And for our return flight, it will be Business Class as well." He chuckled, he would never win. She was so quick-witted that she would unravel all his arguments in no time.

The lunch was delicious. Sully did not particularly like anything coming out of the ocean, but he had to admit that _Ocean Prime_ worked miracles with the fish and the seafood in general. Michaela adored watching her husband as he carefully tasted the different dishes she had ordered. Explaining the ingredients of each dish, they looked at each other, losing themselves in their eyes. They touched hands and, under the table, thighs and knees, everything adding more and more fire to their longing for each other. Finished lunch, Michaela pulled out her credit card and asked for the bill. Sully felt stupid that he would let his wife pay for the meal and vowed that he would take measures to avoid such embarrassing situations in the future. After all, he was the man of the house, no way was he going to abandon his 19th century opinions on what a husband should and shouldn't do for his wife and, paying for a meal, was one of the things Sully wanted to take care of. For this once he had no other choice other than to accept Michaela offering her credit card, but he made a mental note to have a heart-to-heart talk with her on this subject.

A stroll along the ocean front was the next thing they embarked upon. The weather was lovely and warm, with his arm around Michaela's shoulders and her arm around his waist, they were close together. Feeling each other's body heat radiating through their clothes, the attraction they exerted on each other again caused the tension between them to build up more and more. "Sully," Michaela began, "let's go home for a nap after all this walking?" Immediately catching her meaning, he teased her: "Sure ya want just a nap?" "Sully!" she called out, "don't you ever think of anything else?" "Do you?" he countered, his eyes twinkling in all their blueness. Both bursting out into a fit of laughing, they made their way to the subway to go home, anticipating what their _nap_ was going to offer them...

Shortly after two o'clock, Harrison let them in. Having known Michaela all her life, he could clearly see how radiant she was, the happiness made her face glow and, looking at her husband, he saw that same look of contentment on his face. They were a beautiful couple, Harrison thought. He had discussed this new husband of Michaela with Martha, who knew Michaela even better than he did, and they had concurred in their opinion of Sully, that he would prove to be a dedicated, faithful husband for their mistress' fifth child. They had also noticed that Sully did not drink anything alcoholic. With the many problems alcohol caused in the world, the two employees were pleased that at least for the time being, Michaela would not have to cope with a husband taking to drinking. When he heard Michaela announce that they would go for a nap, Harrison could hardly keep from smiling. _Newlyweds and a nap,_ he couldn't help but think, having no problem imagining the nature of the _nap,_ albeit happy for these two that they would enjoy their married life in such perfect harmony.

Surreptitiously Sully looked at his watch. Mrs Quinn would be home by six, she had said, so this would give him a bit less than four hours of amorous antics with his adorable wife... While he walked up the stairs, he could already feel his arousal coming on, all morning, while they were roaming through Boston's streets, he had be in a permanent state of semi-arousal, Michaela's proximity always had that effect on him, he wondered if it would abate in the near future, it was slightly uncomfortable, feeling so excited all the time. Luckily she apparently suffered the same fate, since in fact she had been the one to propose this _nap_, which led him to conclude that they were on the same wavelength, as least as far as the frequency of their lovemaking was concerned.

Michaela followed her husband upstairs. Like him, she got more and more excited at the thought of feeling him skin-to-skin again, this time she wanted him all, she was going to do all she could to make this session as memorable as the other ones had been so far. She loved caressing him, and was surprised at herself, how was it possible that she had been able to adjust so quickly to the physical part of their marriage? Her upbringing had been overly prudish, rules and regulations of society had been inculcated in her mind and now, all of a sudden, she found she had freed herself completely of all the restrictions her upbringing had dictated her. Anything she and Sully wanted to venture out on, would be fine with her. The love she felt for him was boundless, life without Sully was unthinkable.


	44. Chapter 44

**Chapter 44** \- _A memorable nap - Quinn Residence - Boston_

In her room, Michaela and Sully let themselves drop on the bed. "Yeah," Sully said pensively, "Mrs Sully wants a nap..." at which words they burst out laughing once more. "I can't help it, Sully, being near you just turns me on so awfully strong that I can think of only one thing..." "And what is that one thing?" he teased her. "How to get to the nearest possible place where we can be all alone... And don't you dare tell me that you don't like it!" she threatened him. Peals of loud laughter echoed through the room once more, travelling through the open window of Michaela's room to the open window of the kitchen, where Harrison and Martha looked at each other, overjoyed that Miss Michaela, that sweet child who had grown into such a beautiful, kind and warm young woman, had apparently found the love of her life with this sympathetic young man. Like many others, Martha had also seen the way Sully looked at Michaela. It was a look full of love and devotion, she was glad to know that such a look was a promise for a happy future together.

"C'me here, Mrs Sully, have I already told ya today how much I love ya?" he softly said, the look in his eyes making her almost melt on the spot. "You didn't tell me, but you made me feel it, remember, our _quickie_ this morning after breakfast? And earlier on, at dawn, when I obeyed my urges and woke you up, obliging you to do your duty as a husband?" she teased while started to caress him, trying to undo the buttons on his shirt. "I love you is not enough," Sully said, "I adore you, you're my world, my home, my everything. Ya know that, don't ya?" "As much as you are my world, Sully. What I feel for you, is getting stronger and stronger with each day that we are married. Where do you think that it will stop?"

A kiss was long overdue, their tongues danced, their hearts sped up, and their hands were roaming over their bodies, tugging at shirt, blouse, pants, shedding it all in that one and only burning desire to be skin-to-skin, join their bodies, reach their peaks, revel in their endless love for each other. All clothes scattered on the floor, Michaela motioned Sully to lie on his back on the bed. Obediently he obliged, the vision he made, turned her on no end. He was so handsome, she could all of a sudden understand her sister Marjorie, who had been undressing him with her eyes. Silently she send up a short prayer to all gods, spirits and whatever other force in power, that she would never have to compete for his love with any other female on the planet. That, she concluded, would be more than devastating...

Everything about him was loveable, her hands started caressing all those places she knew he liked being touched. At the same time, she felt Sully's hands roaming over her own body. Pleasure was the one thing they appreciated in equal parts, there was no limit to what they would not do to the other to give pleasure. Fleetingly Michaela thought of her mother's innocent look when she mentioned her hours of absence to her daughter. Michaela was convinced her mother remained far from her home to grant them the privacy they needed. And then there was Harrison, Michaela thought, he too must have been fully aware of what they were up to. As she was caressing her husband's magnificent body, she wasn't sure if she wanted to be embarrassed or proud of her newly acquired expertise in the realm of passionate lovemaking...

Sully's mind had gone blank. He floated somewhere in the universe, unable to have one single coherent thought. His wife's caresses inhibited any faculty his mind might have had for rational thought, he was reduced to a heap of pure instinct, and, caressing Michaela's silky skin, he almost came over the edge. After enjoying the touching and caressing for quite some time, Sully warned her: "'Chaela, stop, I can't hold on, gotta calm down a bit," he panted. Michaela let go of him, dropping down by his side. Again it flashed through his mind how on earth he had managed to marry a woman of such passion and so willing to try out whatever came to mind. When he met her, he had no inkling of the world they would enter upon together, it simply was miraculous. He would do anything to please her, he was willing to try out the weirdest things if he knew that it would bring them a new sensation.

Awed by the intensity of their lovemaking, he started fondling Michaela's centre to help her reach her climax, the occurrence of which would soon be followed by his own release. He knew he had to wait for her _almost there_ to let go completely. His movements were still at a sustained pace, he massaged her centre when suddenly, he heard her soft moan _almost there_ followed by the usual _yeeesss, yeeesss, Sullyyy!_ Oh, the feelings she provoked in him with these words, he sped up and with his customary grunts of _arrrggghhh, arrrggghhh,_ he enjoyed a powerful peak.

Down in the kitchen, Harrison and Martha looked at each other, correctly interpreting the noises emanating from Michaela's room for what they meant. They both chuckled. "Newlyweds," was the only comment Harrison gave. Martha just giggled, glad that Michaela had turned out to be such a passionate and normal young woman, not afraid to engage in fiery encounters in broad daylight with that stunning husband of hers. "I don't think they realise that with all windows open, we can overhear them," Martha remarked dryly. "Better never let them know," Harrison commented. "No," Martha said, "poor Michaela would be more than mortified, don't you think?" Harrison nodded. "It's good that Mrs Quinn is not at home," he pondered, "Michaela would never have been able to relax knowing her mother was nearby." "I think Mrs Quinn stays away to give them some privacy," Martha proposed, knowing her mistress quite well after so many decades of being in her service.

Upstairs, the newlyweds were at the end of their wits, panting and sweating they kissed and snuggled, caressed and touched, each thankful for what the other had given. While they were attempting to come down from their respective highs, their breathing still fast and irregular, their heartbeats slowly getting back to normal, they started giggling. "Thank you, Michaela," Sully, having dropped half dead beside her, breathed in her ear. Michaela returned: "Thank you, Sully. This was again wonderful, like so many times we've already had." "And so many more to come," Sully added. "True," she agreed, "we have all our life to enjoy this together..." "Mmm," he softly urged her, "I want to hold you and kiss you, can't be without that for too long." They snuggled into each other's arms, revelling in the euphoria of the moment, the cloudless sky not only outside, but also for their future together. Tired of these very intense activities, they drifted off to sleep, blissfully happy and confident that also the last topic of discussion with Mrs Quinn would be tackled by their joined efforts.


	45. Chapter 45

**Chapter 45** \- _A mother-in-law's last touchy topic - Quinn Residence - Boston_

Michaela woke up first. Leisurely she stretched her legs, careful not to disturb Sully who was still in a deep sleep. She was awed by the love she felt for him, a love that seemed to get deeper and deeper with each passing day. She looked at her watch. Ten past five, her mother would come home at around six, she could still snuggle a bit with her husband, whose body heat felt so fantastic, helping her to relax and forget about any unpleasant task at hand, such as the upcoming dinner with her mother and sisters, and the subsequent talk with her mother.

In his sleep, Sully was softly moaning. She recognised it to be a moan of pleasure, not one of anxiety. She giggled. Maybe he was even dreaming of her? This intimacy thing really was amazing, she thought. Remembering what her ideas of this specific part of marriage had been before meeting Sully, made her smile. Some of her married friends, one of whom was Miriam, had certainly told her that it was very pleasant, and so had Rebecca, but Michaela had to admit that none of their confidences came close to what she had found out with Sully since the day she married him.

Sully stirred and opened his eyes. Gazing straight at him, was his beloved wife. "Hello beautiful!" he greeted her, "Sleep well?" "Yes, lovely," she answered. "Shower?" he proposed. "Anytime," she countered, getting up and walking over to the bathroom. Kissing under the warm water was a special treat, especially when Sully went down to her breasts and suckled her nipples, she felt shivers travel down her spine, activating her centre with the familiar sensations. She moved her hand down and stroked him. The mere fact of seeing her naked, turned him on. Silently they decided that this was not the time to go any further, not even for a _quickie_, they had to dry their hair and get ready to go down for dinner.

After giving each other a thorough wash, whereby especially their sensitive spots were getting more than the necessary care, they towelled each other dry. Later on, in Michaela's room, they took turns to dry their hair with the hair dryer, Michaela leaning back when Sully took care of her and Sully sitting and reveling in the first woman who ever dried and brushed his hair since he was a teenager. Around six o'clock, they were ready to join the rest of the family. For the occasion, Sully had dressed up in his three-piece suite and Michaela had put on one of her fashionable Chanel suits.

They were greeted by Mrs Quinn, who had just come home from her tea party. "Hello Mother," Michaela said, walking over to her mother to give her a peck on the cheek. Sully nodded: "Mrs Quinn..." None of her other daughters had yet arrived, so Michaela hoped her mother would broach the last remaining topic so that they could have peace and quiet on all counts. Clearing her throat, Michaela asked: "Mother, was there anything else you wanted to speak with us about? Now might be just a good time, before the others join us for dinner."

Elizabeth looked at the two young people. They definitely looked radiant, she decided. She liked this Mr Sully more and more, just the financial side remained to be discussed and she would give them her blessing. "Yes dear, I would like to speak of one last thing, and that is the way in which you are going to organise your finances. Mr Sully, I trust you know that Michaela, your wife, is very wealthy?" In all honesty, Sully responded: "I know she has inherited an important amount of money when your husband died, but I do not know how much this is and, quite honestly, I am not interested to know this. I consider this to be Michaela's property and not mine. But my homestead and the land are now half owned by Michaela." "Why would you share your possessions with her and she not with you?" Elizabeth wanted to know. "I guess I have some old-fashioned ideas that I have to provide for my wife," Sully answered. "Exactly how do you see your future with Michaela?" "What do you mean, Mrs Quinn?" "Well, you can see for yourself that Michaela is used to a certain quality of life, she is a doctor, so how do you think you can provide for her?" "I can't," Sully confessed honestly. "That was one of the first problems I had to face when I realised that I was in love with her, that nothing could come of it because we come from two different worlds. Also the fact that she is far more educated than I am, made me avoid her in the beginning."

At this point, Michaela cut in: "But then Daniel helped us see that we should speak of our feelings for each other because he had noticed that something had happened when we first met." Sully continued: "From one thing came another, and here we are, married and trying to make it work. So far we manage quite well." "Yes, so I have noticed," Elizabeth dryly conceded, causing Michaela to realise that her mother had correctly guessed that they needed some privacy in the afternoon. "But that does not answer my question," Elizabeth reminded Sully. "The way I see it," Sully tried to explain, "is that I will try and provide for Michaela as best I can, and if she wishes for things that I cannot possibly afford, she will use her own money." "For our day-to-day expenses we have agreed that we will take turns in paying for things. We will be together most of the time when we go shopping, so it should not be too difficult to make an equal split," Michaela stated, continuing: "And I am quite happy living modestly, Mother. I do not need all the luxuries that I grew up with." "I know you do not demand much, Michaela, you never have. You only exaggerated with the number of dolls you wished to have in your dolls' house hospital, poor dolls, all cut up and wrapped up in bandages and plaster," Elizabeth laughed at Michaela and Sully, "that was quite a thing to witness, Mr Sully, a three-year-old with all her dolls in hospital."

Sully loved to hear about Michaela's youth. "After dinner," Elizabeth announced, "I shall show you some pictures of Michaela as a child, Mr Sully. I think you might like that." "Like that?! Love that!" Sully called out, laying his arm around Michaela's shoulder, squeezing her to him and placing a long, loving peck on her cheek. "I think we have sufficiently spoken about the way you organise your life together, Michaela," her mother said, "I am glad you have such a caring husband, and I gladly give you two my blessing for your marriage."

Michaela felt tears pricking in her eyes, her mother had never been very affectionate with her, most of the time disapproving of her choices, but now, hearing her mother give her blessing to her union with Sully, was one of the most moving moments between her and her mother. Michaela stood up, and walking over to her mother, hugged her and whispered: "Thank you Mother, you do not know how happy that makes me. To hear you accept my husband into your heart, is the most touching thing I can think of right now. Sully is my life, my world, he means everything to me and, believe me Mother, we will both do all we can to make our marriage a success."

Sully watched mother and daughter bonding into a loving relationship. He felt proud of Michaela, who, with her caring and warm personality, always succeeded in bringing out the best in each person. Looking up at her daughter, Elizabeth couldn't help but ask: "Did you two talk about any children yet or are you keeping that option far away from you for the time being?" Michaela smiled. "We're just letting mother nature do whatever she pleases, Mother. If it happens, it happens, if not, we'll see how we'll deal with that." "But if you would have a baby, Michaela, you can't go to work anymore," her mother wondered, "how do you think to solve that?" Sully chuckled, "Well, let me tell you, Mrs Quinn, that baby will also have a father and I'm more than willing to step back to a half day job to take care of any baby that Michaela will give me." "Amazing," was all Elizabeth was able to say. Yet more and more she understood what Michaela had seen and still saw in this exceptional young man. He may not come from a wealthy family, he may not have a university degree, but he certainly had one thing that was even more important: the love and devotion to his wife. Her youngest daughter, she thought, had made a very wise choice in marrying this fine young man.


	46. Chapter 46

**Chapter 46** \- _A dinner with the family - Quinn Residence - Boston_

In the meantime, all the other guests had arrived and the family was ready to sit down for dinner. Marjorie, reminding herself of the sheer uncontrollable urges she had felt while sitting opposite Sully, had chosen to be seated far away from him at the family table. She scooted up close to her mother, knowing that Michaela and Sully would definitely prefer to sit at the other end, since they could not refrain from all sorts of caresses under the table, caresses the nature of which Marjorie did not want to let her fantasy wander upon, her jealousy once more flaring up. That her youngest sister should have landed such a perfect specimen of a man, truly a hunk, was more than annoying. Compared to Everett, her husband, this Sully was at the other end of the sexual spectrum. Even though she chose to sit far from him, she was dying to know more of his performance in bed. She vowed to take Michaela apart at the first possible occasion and downright ask her about it. From her sister's reaction, she reckoned she could fathom what this hunk had to offer. Even if she would never have the opportunity to lay hands on him, at least she could let her fantasy take her on a ride in passion lane...

"Good evening everybody," Elizabeth greeted her five daughters and respective husbands. "I hope you are all doing well? This afternoon I had a most pleasant afternoon tea with Mrs Lewis and some other ladies of our circle and, Michaela, they all send their special greetings to you and above all, their congratulations on your recent wedding with Mr Sully." All those present mumbled a return greeting. Being addressed as _Mr Sully_ did not really please him, but Sully concluded that it would be too much of a pain to make a lady of Mrs Quinn's age forget her manners and inculcated rules of etiquette to make her drop the _Mister_ part, so he figured he would just have to live with it. Without him telling her this, Michaela was aware that Sully apparently accepted her mother's habit of addressing him with _Mister_ and she admired him for his respect for and tolerance with a lady of her mother's age. When she noticed that Marjorie had preferred to sit far away from her and Sully, she inwardly laughed. So her sexually over-active sister had chosen the path of wisdom and moved herself away from the object of her wanton fantasies...

When Sully, in turn, observed that Marjorie was no longer able to ogle him unashamedly, he relaxed and focused his attention on his beloved wife, sitting at his side. Hidden by the table and overlapping tablecloth, he caressed her thigh, squeezing it slightly as a reminder of his love for her. A light blush tinted Michaela's cheeks, hardly noticed by anyone else but her husband, who felt his heart overflowing with love for this amazing woman.

Dinner was delicious and Sully, feeling quite hungry after the very intense, energy-consuming amorous interlude of the afternoon, kept serving himself with all the little titbits displayed on the large dishes arranged on the table. Michaela, noticing her husband's strategy, almost laughed out loud at his way of dealing with his need for large portions to appease his hunger. Underneath the table, she just couldn't refrain from caressing her husband's solid thigh, not realising that this would immediately provoke a violent reaction of his body. Looking at his wife, Sully leaned over to her and whispered: "Don't, Michaela, I can't stop my reaction to what you're doing to me." "Sorry," she responded and removed her hand, not without feeling proud that she could, with one single caress, speed up his senses in such a way.

Rebecca and Richard, sitting opposite the newlyweds, had an inkling of what was happening on the other side of the table, and, leaning over to his wife, Richard couldn't help but softly ask her: "Does this not remind you of the first weeks after we got married?" Rebecca looked up at him, quietly responding: "They are at least as much, if not more, in love with each other than we were. It is amazing to witness this deep love they share, don't you think they are a splendid couple?" Richard nodded, Sully and Michaela were indeed, a magnificent couple if ever there was one. When he had met Rebecca, the love of his life, he had also made the acquaintance of Michaela, who was still a young girl at that time. The promise that she would become a stunningly beautiful woman, was already present then, Richard had clearly seen that. Richard loved Rebecca dearly, but Michaela also occupied a very special place in his heart, so when he met Sully, he was more than happy to feel the integrity and honesty the latter carried in him. Yes, Michaela had made the right choice, if choice it was, he mused. Did not mother nature make this kind of choice for us?

Claudette and Maureen had not refrained from intensively gossiping about Michaela and her new husband. Without admitting it, they both had to concede that this Sully was quite a feast for the eye. They had wondered if their sister's attraction to this man was purely physical or did they have more in common than just their stunning looks? What, had they wondered, would Michaela do if she fell pregnant? Leave her baby to a nanny, like their mother had done with them? Or would Michaela stop working? They were dying with curiosity to find out. Claudette decided to take the plunge.

"Michaela," Claudette began, speaking up aloud to make sure she had everybody's attention, "have you ever thought, now that you are married, that you might have a baby? If that happens, will you stop working as a doctor then?" Michaela smiled at her sister. "Yes, the thought has crossed our minds, isn't it, Sully?" "Well, how are you going to deal with that?" Claudette insisted. Sully, annoyed that this silly woman meddled in their affairs, bluntly said: "If Michaela wants to continue working, I'll stop and take care of our child myself." All present fell silent. This was unheard of. A husband quitting his job to take care of a baby?! Rebecca was the first to give a comment. "I think that is a fabulous idea, Sully. We all know how much being a doctor means to Michaela, so yes, this might well be an ideal solution." Michaela felt it was time to cut in. "For the time being, I'm not pregnant, so the problem hasn't arisen yet for us to be concerned with. When it happens, we'll deal with the consequences, won't we, Sully?" Sully nodded at the wise words of his wife.

Maureen, eager to show that she was a woman of the world, chirped up: "I suppose then that Michaela's fortune will come in handy as well?" Sully, annoyed at the hidden allusion that he would have married Michaela only because of her fortune, immediately kicked in: "Don't know what Michaela's fortune is, and I don't want to know it either. Michaela has her own possessions and I will never claim any of it. Just so as you all know it, money has never been an issue for me. I just want to earn enough to live comfortably and so far I've managed quite well. Michaela seems to adapt easily to my rather modest way of living and, if she feels she needs something I can't afford, she can at least offer herself whatever she wishes by using her own resources. Does that clarify the situation for you?"

Feeling that she was being put into place by Sully, Maureen humphed, but refrained from commenting any further. Richard chuckled, Sully had not disappointed him. With clarity and conviction, this young man had made his point. Richard was more and more convinced that Michaela had made the right choice. It was obvious that she had found the love of her life, because this Sully surely was a very special young man. Richard remembered that Rebecca had told him that Sully had lived many years with the Cheyenne Indians, that the tribe even had custody of him after he lost both father and mother. Maybe, he mused, the habits and customs, combined with the wisdom of the native Americans' philosophy of life, had modelled Sully into becoming the man he now was. Amazing, yes, it was really amazing...

Without taking part in the conversation, Elizabeth had listened carefully to what was being said. Once silence had fallen, she raised her voice, saying: "I have given Michaela and Mr Sully my blessing. I have had a few talks with them and can only say that I have the fullest confidence that their union will be a very happy one. The foundation they have laid, is one of the purest loves I have ever witnessed between two people. I will readily admit that, at first, I was not too confident, they come from different worlds, but now that I have had the opportunity to hear more details of their life in Colorado Springs, I am very optimistic for their future. I also expect that soon, I will announce that I will go to that far off city to make a visit to Michaela and Sully, that is, if they invite me," Elizabeth chuckled.

Immediately, Michaela jumped in: "Mother! That would be such a pleasure! Please feel free to visit us as soon as you have the time to do so, Sully and I will be thrilled to show you the beauty of Colorado Springs! Remember I said so already when we had our private talks!" Sully nodded, even though Elizabeth was a redoubtable lady, he liked her. She was honest, straightforward and she knew her own mind. And then, being Michaela's mother was a further point of consideration, after all, for Michaela he would put up with anyone or any situation, he was willing to put on posh garments like this three-piece suit, and even if Michaela would ask him to wear any other disguise, he would do it. Her happiness was his one and foremost priority.


	47. Chapter 47

**Chapter 47** \- _Some after dinner small talk - Quinn Residence - Boston_

After dinner, the family headed for the parlour for some further small talk. Sully, counting backward, came to the devastating conclusion that it had already been more than six hours ago since he had enjoyed intimacy with his stunning wife. His urges were building up again and he wondered how long it would be before he could withdraw to her room without being accused of being rude... To Michaela, by just looking at him, it was as if she could read his thoughts. She saw love and longing in his eyes, and, since she was harbouring the same urges, she leaned on his shoulder, squeezing his hand as if to say: _me too, I want to leave all these people, to be alone with you..._ Sully, melting at the mere squeeze, murmured near her ear: "How are you, _hesta-noo'otse_ of mine?" Rebecca, overhearing the strange word, softly asked: "What does that mean? It sounds lovely!" Michaela smiled at her sister. "It's a Cheyenne word, and it means _heartsong_. Something like _my dear, darling,_ or _sweetheart,_ " she explained. "I'm jealous, Michaela, you have found the one man in the world who really suits you..." "I thought you and Richard have the same thing?" "Yes, in a certain way we do, but when I see the two of you, I realise your connection is even stronger than what I ever had with Richard." And giving Michaela and Sully a nod of understanding, she turned on her heels to join her husband, who was engaged in a fierce discussion with his three other brothers-in-law.

Sully nudged Michaela. "How long before we can sneak off in all decency?" he softly whispered in her ear, getting more and more desperate to be alone with her. He was surprised that he needed her so much and so often, but he was even more surprised that she seemed to have those same needs. His friends had often complained that their wives did not share their need for frequent intimacy, some of them had refused to beg their wives and had taken a mistress, so that they could properly satiate their sexual appetites without inconveniencing their spouses... He wondered if Michaela would remain such a passionate lover? Or would she calm down? If she did, and he didn't, what would he do? Try and calm down as well, or take a mistress like some of his friends? The mere idea of being intimate with another woman was so repulsive to him, that he quickly dropped this train of thought. If already Michaela was the only one he had ever fallen in love with, chances were that he would never stray from her either. Or at least, he hoped so. "Just a few more moments, Sully," Michaela answered his question. "As soon as the first couple leaves, we can also tell them we're calling it a day." He nodded, hoping some of these sisters and brothers-in-law would soon feel the need to leave.

Marjorie ambled over to them, she was dying to speak to Michaela alone, but she was at a loss how to send that Sully character packing. With him around, she knew she would never be able to squeeze any saucy details of Sully's sexual performance out of her sister. If only Everett was not such an oaf, she might have let him in on her plan, asking him to distract Sully, leading him away from Michaela. But as it was now, she would have to figure out some ploy all by herself to get Sully out of her way. It was as if a flash of lightning struck her. Michaela was a doctor! She had found how to go about this. "Michaela, Sully," she greeted them and, addressing her sister, she continued: "Michaela, I have a few questions, uhm... of a confidential, uhm... more female nature, to which you, as a doctor, would certainly have an answer. Would you mind to take me up to your room so that we can have a confidential _girly talk?_" Michaela smiled, having a good idea what her sister wanted to ask her. "Sully? You'll excuse me for a few minutes?" He nodded, no problem with him, as long as this over-sexed Marjorie didn't want a private talk with him, he was fine with his wife going along with her.

In Michaela's room, Marjorie came straight to the point. "I have a problem with excessive bleeding during my monthlies," she announced, "is there anything that can be done against that?" Michaela felt sorry for her sister. Her own monthlies were usually very normal, not lasting too long, with an occasional headache, easily cured with a common painkiller and the backache was also not there at every occurrence, equally curable with an ordinary painkiller. "I'm afraid there is not much that can be done," she answered. "You might want to check for anaemia, that sometimes is a reason for abnormal bleeding, but if you do not have that, you will have to live with it."

Marjorie sighed, now was the moment for her attack to find out more about that hunk. "Are you happy, being married to Sully, Michaela?" she innocently asked. Michaela, remembering the scorching looks her sister had graced her husband with, immediately flared the real reason for this _girly talk._ Inwardly she laughed at her sister. "Yes, I am extremely happy," she responded, curious to find out how Marjorie would develop her tactics. "And uhm... in bed, are you all right with that as well? I mean, I know you never had any interest in men, so I assume Sully was your first?" Michaela smiled. "Yes, he was, but then, I was his first too."

Marjorie almost fell off her chair. What?! This hunk was a virgin when her sister married him?! She could hardly believe it. "Michaela, I think he's been pulling your leg there, admit it, the guy has absolutely stunning looks and he wants to make you believe you're his first?! Don't be so naive, please! Just take it from me, you should never believe a man on his word." "As hard as it may be to believe that, Marjorie, there are two different and very reliable sources who, independent from one another, have told me things about Sully and this was one of them. So whether you believe it or not, I do, because I have no reason to believe Sully would lie to me about that. And I am sorry to say, you may not believe your Everett or any man on his word, but I do believe Sully, he is special, when he gives his word, he keeps it. He is fundamentally honest."

Marjorie was speechless. Michaela, highly amused by her sister's confusion, gently asked her: "Any more questions?" Recovering her speech, Marjorie assumed: "So you two discovered sex together? Was that any fun at all? I mean, being both virgins must have been very awkward, right?" "No, it wasn't," Michaela reassured her sister, "we'd done a lot of kissing, snuggling and cuddling, and moved on to touching and caressing our bodies as well, so we had quite a good idea what our bodies were like. And, don't forget, Sully lived many years with the Cheyenne Indians and they are far less inhibited than we are. He told me that they talk freely about how to behave with women and how to make them happy, not only in day-to-day life, but also in bed."

Marjorie became more and more jealous of her sister who apparently had found not only an Adonis, but also a Casanova. Darn Everett, that oaf, how could she ever have fallen for him... she scolded herself. Marjorie sighed, better admit it. "I'm jealous of you, Michaela," she softly said. "Why? Aren't you happy with Everett?" Marjorie humphed. "Everett is nothing compared to your Sully. What you have, is unique, better cherish it and take care that no other woman comes too close to him. I've rarely seen such a perfect chap. Besides that, I know that Everett cheats on me, I'm all the time afraid that he'll bring home some dreadful sickness, like AIDS or other STDs," Marjorie spoke. "Oblige him to wear a condom," Michaela advised her, "that's at least one precaution you can take. Tell him plainly that you know he's cheating on you, tell him you can live with that, but that wearing a condom is one of your conditions to have sex with him."

_So after all, my little sister is not so naive,_ Marjorie thought, admiring the doctor that Michaela had just proved her to be. Her advice was exactly what Marjorie needed, so she decided to put an end to the _girly talk_ and allow Michaela to descend to the parlour, where Sully would be surely very glad to see her again. "Thank you for this talk, Michaela," she said, this time sincerely meaning it. "I will certainly heed your words and take the necessary steps to put your advice into practice." Michaela smiled, "Glad I could be of help, you're welcome to ask me anything anytime. Even when I'll be back in Colorado Springs, you can always call me or Skype me, or send me an email. Shall we go down to the others now?" "Yes, you're dying to be at Sully's side, right?" Marjorie teased her sister.

"Marriage suits you, Michaela, I have never seen you so radiant." "I do feel that way, radiant," Michaela confessed, "I have never been so happy in my entire life. All through the years, I felt a kind of loneliness, but the moment I met Sully, that feeling vanished and since we are together, it has never come back. Cloud Dancing says we are _soul mates_," she added. "Who's Cloud Dancing?" Marjorie asked, curious at this Indian sounding name. "He is Sully's Cheyenne brother, they grew up together, Sully's and Cloud Dancing's families have been close friends for many generations, Sully and Cloud Dancing consider themselves to be brothers. Their friendship goes back a long way and is very deep. Cloud Dancing's wife, Snow Bird, has prepared me for the wedding night with Sully, according to the Cheyenne traditions. She massaged my entire body with a special oil, helping me to relax. And she told me exactly what to expect and how to act upon it. Sully had received instructions from Cloud Dancing, including a salve that he should put on to ease the pain for me. That really helped, I hardly felt anything. Oh, Marjorie, that first time was pure magic, I can't describe it to you. Since then, the physical part of our union has been getting better and better, even better than I ever expected it to be," Michaela gushed, her blush accentuating her words. Marjorie, not wanting her feelings of jealousy to get even more exacerbated, decided to cut short the conversation there and then, before Michaela could embark upon even more words of praise with regard to that stunning husband of hers.

Downstairs, Sully almost ran to his wife's side as soon as she stuck her nose around the door. "Missed you," he whispered urgently in her ear, taking her in a tight embrace. The rest of the family looked on, the ladies melting at the sight of such deep love, the men chuckling at so much eagerness to have his wife in his arms. Michaela looked at him, "Missed you too," she countered softly, just audible for him. "Could you help Marjorie?" he enquired. "Yes, I could, remind me to tell you later, when we're alone," she replied. "What did I miss when I was upstairs with her?" she enquired in turn. "Mmm, not much, had a talk with Richard about Quinn women in general and the youngest in particular and how to handle a certain innate stubbornness," he murmured, still keeping close to her ear, to avoid others hearing him. "Want to know all about that," Michaela warned him, "no gossiping about me should go on behind my back!" "It'll be my pleasure to report all the gossip to you," Sully promised her.

To his great joy, Rebecca and Richard announced that they would be leaving, heading home. This meant that he too, could announce without being rude that Michaela and he would call it a day and retire to her room. Sitting through all these hours with his lover so close to him without being able to touch and kiss her, was extremely trying, his longing for her was building up and he looked forward to being alone with her as soon as reasonably possible.


	48. Chapter 48

**Chapter 48** \- _An evening's delights - Michaela's room - Quinn Residence - Boston_

After Rebecca and Richard, the other three sisters also announced their departure and, once everybody had said their goodbyes, Michaela and Sully too wished goodnight to Elizabeth. The latter held them back a moment and offered to show Sully Michaela's childhood photographs the next morning at breakfast. Sully was torn between staying to see the images of his beloved one as a child, or hurrying upstairs to finally be alone with her. Elizabeth saw his hesitation and took the decision for him. "We'll have a look at them at breakfast," she suggested, "let's all head for bed now, tomorrow will be a busy day for you two. Goodnight!" And with those words she turned around and ascended the stairs to go to her bedroom.

Even though they felt like running, they made a special effort to slowly walk up the stairs. Once the door behind them shut and the key turned for one hundred percent privacy, they crashed into each other's arms. "Finally!" Sully croaked, frantically seeking his wife's mouth for a kiss so deep, that they both almost suffocated. "Seems like an eternity since I last made love to you," he hissed in her ear, making her tingle all over her body with the promise of yet another night of intense lovemaking. "D'you realise it's been more than eight hours since we last made love?" These words almost killed her. "Take these clothes off," she panted, tugging at them, "let's have a _quickie_ first, we'll do the slow version afterwards, I need you too badly right now, I'm about to explode."

Sully chuckled, her fiery passion had not yet ceased to amaze him. Almost ripping off each other's clothes, dropping them in a pile on the floor, they rubbed against each other, skin-to-skin was what they needed most. Sully reached down, checking her readiness, not surprised to find the usual moisture at her entrance. "Doggy like we saw in the book, or missionary?" he offered, his voice hoarse with passion. "Doggy," she managed to mumble, always willing to try out something new, dropping on the bed on her stomach, her knees bended, offering him a luscious, unlimited view of her backside. He got more and more aroused, he positioned himself, encircled her waist, pulled her up towards his own centre, to travel together to the heavenly universe of marital bliss.

While massaging her centre, it didn't take long for her to loudly whisper _almost there... Yessss, yessss!_ coming violently over the edge. When he felt her contractions, he let go as well. _"Arrrggghhh, arrrggghhh,"_ he grunted, trying to stifle the noise, as his body was convulsing with violent spasms. He thoroughly enjoyed his peak, joining with the love of his life was one of the most remarkable experiences he had ever had. He let himself drop down on Michaela's back, she had stretched her legs and was enjoying the feeling of her husband covering her completely with his gorgeous body. His hot breath tickled her nape, fully relaxed after having been so deliciously made love to by him, the way he had massaged her to help her reach such a perfect climax, she wondered if it would always remain so marvellous or if they would inevitably come down from their newlywed high to join the vast majority of married couples who enjoyed each other in a far less passionate manner and definitely also far less frequently...

Breath and heartbeat back to normal, Sully murmured: "Shower?" "Mmmm, good idea, yes!" came her answer. He got up and headed for the bathroom. Turning on the water, he stepped under the streaming warm jet, hoping she would join him. He wanted to touch and caress her some more, the _quickie_ was nice and good, it took away some of the worst tension, but it was by far not enough to quench his need for her. When she joined him in the shower, she was utterly surprised to see him aroused again. "Already?" she enquired, motioning down to his member, making itself very visible in all its glory. He smirked, "I ain't had enough yet, d'you mind?" "Mind?! Never ever, you should know by now that I am like you, always in the mood..." They broke into a fit of giggles, laughing out loud, oblivious of the rest of the world, revelling in their love and this fabulous activity, called lovemaking...

On the other end of the corridor, Elizabeth Quinn was getting ready for bed as well. In the distance, she heard the faint noises emanating from her daughter's bedroom. She chuckled. Those two were so madly in love, it was more than understandable that they couldn't keep their hands off each other. Elizabeth remembered the first months of her marriage to Josef. It had been heaven. She was sure, Michaela was experiencing this same heaven now with that gorgeous husband of hers. From the noises, Elizabeth could add up how things were unfolding. The tension in these two must have been enormous, Elizabeth thought, because hardly any time had elapsed between them walking up the stairs and the grunts she heard emanating from Sully, knowing what was happening to him. She then heard the shower. Of course, the couple would clean themselves and after that, all night long, they would be on and off making love, sleeping in between, but waking up to satisfy their longing for each other. Elizabeth was extremely pleased that of all her daughters, Michaela seemed to be the one to have found the perfect match.

Under the warm water of the shower, Sully suckled his wife's nipples, sending tingles through her entire body, while he also caressed her centre, sending her almost over the edge again, but more than that, he did not do. Stopping his caresses, he whispered in her ear: "Gotta save it up for later on." "Agreed," she answered, stroking his arousal, careful not to speed up her movements too much. They didn't do much washing, there was more kissing and rubbing going on, anticipating the long hours of the night during which they were going to give each other the ultimate pleasure.

Michaela thought of their short period of courting and how impossible it had been to control their urges. She did not regret one second to have married Sully after merely three months of dating, in those three months, there had never been one moment that they had not been perfectly in tune with each other. Her friends had told her that they sometimes got into quarrels with their husbands, and that they wouldn't speak to each other for some time. Michaela hoped she could avoid that kind of thing happening to Sully and her, she knew she would hate it if she were not on speaking terms with Sully. It frightened her a little bit to realise how much she relied on him, he really was her life, her world, her everything. She wondered if Sully felt the same about her? Only one way to find out...

Stepping out from under the shower, they started to towel themselves dry. With the hair drier, they helped each other to chase the moisture out of their long manes. Michaela loved Sully's long hair, it was of a beautiful honey-like colour, and it had the most lovely curls she had ever seen. Her own hair was rather straight. "Sully," she began while he was brushing her hair when it was dry enough, "may I ask you something?" "You may always ask me anything, you know that," he answered. "Well, it is about our relationship." "What about it?" he felt a pang of anxiety that she was getting second thoughts about having married him after only three months of engagement. "You know, I just realised how much I have come to rely on you. In those few months, you have become the most important person in my life, you are my world, my reason for living and I was wondering how you feel about me?"

Sully chuckled, relieved that she confirmed her love for him with her words. "For me, Michaela, you are my life too, you mean the world to me and not having you in my life, just ain't an option anymore. Without you, I'm lost, I'd be lonely like before. I love you with all my heart. You are my _heartsong_, my _hesta-noo'otse_, my _soul mate_. Does that answer your question?" "It does, completely," she sighed, blissfully happy at his declaration of unconditional devotion to her.

Clean and dry, they returned to bed. Sully got in, opening his arms to her and she snuggled up to him, their lips finding each other for one of those long lasting kisses, when their tongues would meet and play with each other, all thoughts of this not being _proper_ banned to the back of her mind, since this was Sully, the man with whom she was going to spend the rest of her life, the man whose perspiration tasted like honey, whose other bodily fluids harboured nothing abhorrent or repulsive to her...

Her steamy thoughts had turned her on again. Cuddled up into his arms, skin-to-skin, she reached down. "You're uhm... aroused again?" she whispered in awe of his stamina. "Yep, can't help it, seeing you all naked walking over to the bed, had immediate effect on me. But if ya wanna go ta sleep, just tell me, I will calm down eventually, don't worry 'bout me." "I'm just as aroused and longing for you as you are for me," she confessed. He reached down to her centre, hardly surprised at her readiness. He sighed, this was too good to be true, a lover like this was more than he ever knew existed. "What's the deep sigh for?" she wanted to know. "'Cause you're always ready and 'cause I've never heard of a woman being so often and so quickly ready to make love." "But we only know each other, how do you know it's not normal?" "I've spoken often enough with my married friends, or overheard their complaints to know that you are special. 'Chaela, when did I last tell ya that I love ya?" he teased. "You tell me all the time, you don't need to say it, I see it, I feel it, your love is like a warm blanket surrounding me every minute of my life since I met you." "You still have to tell what your talk with Marjorie was all about?" he reminded her.

"Oh yes!" she called out, trying to keep her voice down, "that was quite something. She started out by asking me about excessive bleeding during her monthly, so I gave her some advice, but then she asked me if I was happy being married. So you see, I reckon she just wanted to pry into our married life, since she is totally smitten with you, but she knows she has to leave her fingers off you..." Sully laughed out loud, "Can't believe she's smitten, she don't know me, how can you be smitten if you don't know the other?" "I was smitten without knowing you," Michaela protested. "That's different," Sully corrected her, "we're _soul mates_, and what we have, only happens to _soul mates_. I'm no _soul mate_ with Marjorie." "Maybe she feels she is," Michaela proffered, teasing him. "Forget it, there's only one woman on this planet my _soul mate_. She's right here, in my arms, she's all naked, turning me on no end, all day long I'm longing for her, to do all sorts of naughty things to her, drive her mad with passion, so even if she'd want to, I'll never let her go."

Michaela laughed, "Oh Sully, you're really crazy, aren't you?" "What else did Marjorie ask?" he pressed on. "Well, she said she believed that you had been with many women, so she assumed you would know very well how to handle our first time together. When I told her that you were just as virginal as I was, she said I was naive, that I should never believe a man on his word. Then I told her that I had my information from two independent, very reliable sources and that they had both assured me that you, Mr Sully, had never been interested in any girls or women for that matter. After that, she seemed to believe me. She was quite astonished that we're having such a good time in bed together." "You told her all that?" Sully slightly blushed, he didn't know if he liked the outspokenness of his wife on the subject of their fabulous love life, next time he saw this Marjorie he felt he might be quite embarrassed...

"So tell me about your talk with Richard?" Michaela said. "What did he tell you about the Quinn women?" "Well, uh..." Sully hesitated. His talk with Richard had been very open, he wondered if it was a good idea to tell everything to Michaela, she might feel offended at the things Richard had told him. "Well?" Michaela insisted, "what's the problem?" "The problem is, that this talk with Richard was very interesting, but I don't want to hurt you by telling you all that he told me." "Why would you hurt me?" Michaela did not quite understand her husband's reluctance. Sully sighed. "Okay, lemme start from the beginning." "Please do," she agreed dryly.

"Richard asked me if I was happy to be married, if I didn't feel fenced in, after so many years of being on my own, used to do whatever I pleased. So I told him that you were the best thing that has ever happened to me, that you took away my feeling of loneliness, in short, that you mean the world to me. He seemed quite happy with that. Did you know that he loves you a lot, Michaela?" "I guess so, Rebecca and I were and are still very close, so of course Richard wants to make sure that I am all right," Michaela said. "He also told me that all Quinn women had a stubborn streak and the best way to deal with that was to always give in. _Give in, at first,_ he said. And then you slowly but surely, very carefully, begin to unravel their arguments, one by one, step by step, but be careful to always let her think you're agreeing. It seems to take some practice, but he said he managed quite well with Rebecca." Michaela smiled. "You won't need any practice, you're perfect the way you are," she said, looking at him with all the love she felt for him clearly visible in her eyes. "And you, Mrs Sully, are also perfect the way you are," he said, his eyes reflecting exactly the same sentiment.


	49. Chapter 49

**Chapter 49** \- _More delights - Michaela's room - Quinn Residence - Boston _

They lay there, relaxed and happy in each other's arms. Sully had calmed down, and Michaela too, felt at peace. There was no more tension left in her body, and she yawned. "Shall we go to sleep?" she asked Sully. "Good idea," he said, "but don't forget to act upon your urges if you have some during the night, I might be able to accommodate you." She shook with laughter, "Sully! You're crazy, but I love you _sooo_ much," she confessed once more. "Love you too, and don't you forget it, 'Chaela!" He pulled her towards his body and solidly entwined, they tried to fall asleep. Their intention was good, but their bodies had totally different ideas. Feeling her skin-to-skin with him, her soft breasts against his chest, was too much for his natural urges to ignore. On her thigh, Michaela felt his manhood growing. She giggled, "Sully! We're supposed to go to sleep!" "Yeah, I know, but the gentleman down there apparently has something else in mind, I tried to tell him off, but he won't listen," Sully moaned, rubbing himself against her, all his senses waking up. "Well, we better see to him then," she decided, getting aroused as well at his words, "please turn on your back, okay?"

He had an inkling what she was going to do, he instantly got even more excited, was there ever a more passionate lover than his stunning wife? She watched him as he lay there, sprawled on the bed, the covers thrown off, as the summer heat still lingered in the room. Through the open window, she felt the evening breeze subtly caress her nakedness, it was more than arousing, it was dizzying her with pure lust. She decided to turn around and having done so, she bent down to caress him in that one specific way she knew was going to drive him out of his mind with pleasure. They initiated a dance of love, whereby Sully knew what was expected of him and he gladly complied. The soft moans he heard escaping from her throat, meant she was enjoying this as much as he was enjoying her bold caresses on his lower body.

For quite a while, they played with each other, kissing all those spots they knew would bring them pleasure. It was paradise, nothing more, nothing less. They softly spoke to express their love and their liking of what they were doing to each other, Michaela was awed, once again, that lovemaking could be so delicious and rewarding. Sully's mind had gone blank some time ago, he was only capable of feeling sensations so fabulous that he didn't want to let himself be distracted. He just lay there and let himself float away on a cloud of absolute mindlessness, at the same time pleasuring his wife with his mouth and tongue. All these massages and caresses inevitably led to one and the same result: their respective peaks.

At Michaela's whispered _almost there_, Sully was unable to react. He continued to caress her and felt her come over the edge. This excited him so much, that he could no longer hold back and he let himself go, oblivious to where he was. Afterwards, she took his lips in hers and kissed him softly, conveying in the kiss the love she felt for him. Relieved, he answered her kiss. When they broke apart, he couldn't keep from saying: "You are amazing, Mrs Sully, one day I will write a book about you and tell the world what a fabulous wife and lover you are." "Don't you dare do that!" she warned him laughingly. "I promise you I'll change the names, no one will ever know that the main character in my book, that fabulous, passionate lover, is my own precious wife, my own lady doctor who came to me from the East to brighten my days and make me into the happiest man on the planet." "Amen," Michaela whispered, speechless after this short, but sublime declaration of love.

"Sully, we took this path together and have been learning a lot of new activities since we got married." "You still happy to have married me?" he loved to hear her say that she would never regret it. This time too, she didn't disappoint him. "Oh, Sully, marrying you was the best decision I ever took," kissing him to confirm her words. "I love you so much, each day more, it seems," she sighed. "Aren't we supposed to get some sleep?" she continued. "Can't sleep now, not after this delicious lovemaking, I'm still far too excited to be able to relax and go to sleep," he announced. Michaela moved her hand down to his lower part. It was totally at rest, "It feels so soft and smooth," she mused, "I like to touch it when it is like that, so very much at peace." "Touch it like that and the peace will soon be over," Sully warned her and, in fact, she already felt his reaction to her touch. "So soon afterwards you're able to have this reaction again?" she wondered, "My, you really have the stamina of a race horse..." Sully laughed out loud at her words of praise for his physical endurance, a race horse? Now that was something he had never been compared to...

Like his voice, the melodious laugh of her husband echoed in Michaela's mind. She loved the way he spoke and laughed, everything about him was simply loveable, she mused. Apparently he felt the same for her, because when he looked at her, his eyes told her how much she meant to him. Fleetingly she thought of her mother at the other end of the corridor, surely she must be able to hear Sully's laugh, it was such a loud sound, it can't be that it would not carry all the way to her mother's ears. And when Sully came over the edge? He did utter those loud grunts, would her mother also hear those? How embarrassing, Michaela thought. But then, she reminded herself, her mother once had also been in love, she had been married to her father for many, many years, so all these aspects of intimacy, she had also lived through them. Yet Michaela could not, for the life of her, imagine her mother and father being together like she was with Sully, oh my god, where did these thoughts come from? she wondered. Outrageous, simply outrageous, she scolded herself. All the while she had been caressing her husband, and Sully, not able to keep from touching her, was again gracing her with his delicious ministrations. Michaela sighed, sleep was not yet there, they would first give each other some more pleasure before drifting off...

"No way can we go to sleep now," Michaela remarked, caressing him, getting more and more worked up herself, her body claiming release. "If we make love now," Sully whispered, "I will last a lot longer, since I already came over the edge a while ago." "Then what are we waiting for?" she provoked him. He positioned himself and as always, it felt like heaven. Michaela moaned and wrapped her legs around his hips, allowing him to go all the way. Sully revelled in the feeling of being so deep inside of her, the love of his life, the woman who had opened a world of love for him, a love so big and pure that he was sure it would last for the rest of their lives. He did not want to speed up, he wanted to make it last, to stay inside of her for a long time, taking it slow and ever so easy. It was pure paradise, he let all his thoughts fly out of his mind, he was pure instinct and only knew that he would try and hold on as long as he could.

"You okay, 'Chaela?" he whispered. "Mmm-mm, lovely Sully, this is heaven." "Or paradise, don't you think?" Talking distracted him from his urges to speed up, "being joined like this with you is one of the best things I have ever experienced. I would like to make it last forever, to stop the outside world and never return to it. Eternal lovemaking, wouldn't that be something?" "Sure would," she admitted, "but that's wishful thinking, let's just be happy with what we have, this frequent lovemaking is absolutely mind-blowing. You know you're the best lover in the world, don't you?" "How can you know, you've only ever made love with me. Perhaps there is something we don't know yet, maybe out there is another guy who might give you even more pleasure than I do." "Impossible and besides that, I don't want to find that out. I am completely thrilled with what you have to offer, so this is a useless conversation." "Not exactly useless, it makes me calm down so that I last longer," he replied, chuckling at the funny conversation his attempts at controlling his release were causing them to have, in the meanwhile continuing to keep his moves at a slow pace, giving her as much pleasure as possible.

For at least ten minutes, Sully was able to keep it up. Even though he was stilling his movements from time to time to calm down, resting his body and his arms by gently lowering himself on top of her, Michaela felt the tension within herself building up, the longing to reach her release getting stronger and stronger. She longed to feel that heavenly floating feeling, the contractions of her body, lately she had been counting them and had counted something like fifteen spasms. She wondered for how many seconds they lasted, that would be the next field of investigation, she mused. Thrusting up her hips, she signalled her husband that she was ready for the final spurt. "Do you want to be on top of me?" Sully huskily asked her. "Do you want me to? Does that bring you more pleasure?" she enquired. Sully nodded, "It does, my arms are getting tired of keeping my body's weight off yours for so long," he confessed. "Let's change position then," she agreed. They both got up and Sully lay down on the bed on his back, offering a vision that would remain imprinted in her mind for all times, even that part of him was absolutely gorgeous, she mused...

Looking down at her husband, she saw the pleasure he was feeling. His eyes were closed, his nipples were standing out, hardened by his excitement. The subdued light in the room and the summer evening breeze wafting in through the open window, created an ethereal atmosphere of lust and sensuality. Michaela moved on her lover, feeling other areas of her inner walls being stimulated, thoroughly enjoying the sensations it provoked in her body.

A loud moan escaped his throat, _"'Chaela! This is sooo good!"_ he managed to utter, completely drowned in the throes of passion. He moved his hand down to her centre to grace her with his expert massage. Michaela was in heaven. As was the case for Sully, her mind had gone blank and together, they were reduced to two bodies joined as one and functioning as one, purely on instinct. She kept a slow pace, teasing him with the same torture as he had been teasing her previously by not speeding up. Sully moaned, unable to speak, relishing in his wife giving him so much enjoyment. He opened his eyes and watched her as she looked down at him.

He lift his other hand to her breasts, and gently started squeezing her nipple, one at a time. Her movements on top of him, were exciting him more and more, he knew he would not be able to hold on much longer, so he intensified his massage on her centre, making her squeal out softly from sheer bliss. When he heard the familiar whispered _almost there_, he caught her by her hips, inciting her to speed up the rhythm of her movements. Together they reached their peak. He felt fabulous, his familiar grunts were there as well... Michaela forgot the world around her, vaguely aware how fantastic these encounters with her gorgeous husband were...


	50. Chapter 50

**Chapter 50** \- _Shhh, go to sleep now my 'hesta-noo'otse' - Quinn Residence - Boston_

Michaela let herself drop on her husband's body. "Mmmm," she hummed, "it... it is just... just too wonderful," panting and trying to get her breath back. "Thank you, my _hesta-noo'otse_," Sully murmured. Michaela loved to hear him say this. "Is there a Cheyenne word that I can use to say to you?" she enquired. Sully gave her question some thought. No word came readily to mind, but he was sure there must be one. "We should ask Cloud Dancing and Snow Bird," he suggested, "they will certainly have something and they will be glad to teach you how to pronounce it, because the pronunciation of the Cheyenne language is not evident at all, it's a lot different from the English that we speak." "Mmm, I would love to visit them soon, or do you think they can visit us?" "We'll call them as soon as we get home, they'll be more than curious to know how we managed, here in Boston with your family."

"Speaking of which," he continued, "how are you keeping up, Michaela? If I'm not mistaken, it's not half as bad as you dreaded, right?" "True," she admitted, "I'm more than surprised how well we have managed to have mother accept you as a suitable husband for me. But Sully, do you really not want to know what my fortune is? I mean, as my husband you have a right to know, I don't want to keep anything from you." "Nope, I'm really not interested, Michaela, but there is one thing I would like." "Tell me, you know I'll always try and make you happy if I can." "When we were in that fabulous restaurant on the ocean front, it bothered me that you took out your credit card to pay for that lovely lunch. I felt a bit stupid having my meal being paid for by you, a woman, even though that same woman is my lawfully wedded wife... They don't know that, and I hate being thought of as a... a..." "...gigolo?" Michaela completed the sentence for him. "Yes, that's the word I was looking for," Sully grinned, slightly embarrassed that he had to raise this specific problem with her.

Michaela immediately knew how to tackle this for the future. "I'll have the bank make out a credit card in your name, Sully, to be debited on my account. Next time we go out for a meal which is one of my luxurious, exorbitant wishes, you can use that card and nobody will be the wiser. Would that solve the problem?" "Yes, it would," he confessed, glad that he would not be looked upon as being a woman's toy boy...

"Aren't we supposed to go to sleep?" she murmured, nestling in his arms, the warmth of his body more than deliciously surrounding her, feeling so safe in his embrace that she thought she would drown in happiness. "You sleepy?" he enquired. "Not really," she countered. "What are we doing tomorrow?" he wanted to know. "Shall we go to the beach?" she proposed. "Can we go for a swim somewhere?" Sully asked. "Yes, I know a few very secluded places where we could go, they're a bit outside of town, but we'll be totally private there, no one hardly ever comes there. There is a beach and a small bay where the huge waves of the ocean do not reach, so yes, one can swim there." "Okay, fine with me. You got a bathing suit somewhere? I brought my bathing trunks, or can we swim in the nude there where you are taking me?" "We could, but I don't know if it would be wise," she giggled, "one never knows who might come around!" "Very true, so no bathing in the nude, we'll keep that for when we're at home, at the bottom of the hill, there is the creek where no one ever comes, we can have a nice dive in there. We might even make love out in the open, how would you like that?" "Out in the open?" Michaela felt butterflies take possession of her lower belly again, good heavens, where did this ghastly libido level of hers come from, she wondered, can't be genetic, she mused, thinking of her parents who, in her opinion, had been completely asexual persons... But then, was not Marjorie a very hot-blooded woman? Maybe there was a streak of extraordinary sexual activity in the Quinn family... Again she scolded herself for these strange musings, although they were not so strange, she thought, after entering the world of physical love with Sully, her thoughts had often wandered off in directions which had been totally closed off before knowing him...

Sully chuckled, "Yes, making love out in the open, under the stars, at night, I wouldn't mind trying that out, and you?" "I think I would like that very much, when are we going home? Are we ever thinking of something else, Sully?" "Don't know, Michaela, for the time being you occupy my thoughts day and night and our lovemaking is one of my most favourite activities at the moment. I think we'll get down from our cloud of love soon and we'll be occupied with other things again," Sully prophesied. "I hope so, because our marriage can't be based on just making love, can it?" "Nope, and it won't, don't you worry. We have plenty of things in common, such as our love for nature, our love for our jobs, you share my love for the homestead now that you live in there with me, so I think we can make it work."

Her worries somewhat taken away by his words, Michaela yawned. She thought of going home, and realised that _home_ now meant Colorado Springs, Sully's splendid and comfortable homestead, located in such a privileged spot, no roads running in front of it, no neighbours within hearing distance, lots of nature surrounding it... Boston was not home any longer, they were visitors here, their home was back in Colorado, with a magnificent view of the mountains in the distance. Life decidedly looked rosy to her. "Hey," Sully woke her from her musings, "don't forget to wake me if you have _urges_ during the night, you know I love to be woken up by a passionate lover having special needs..." "I'll will, don't you worry, I'm very selfish when it comes to sating my urges," she murmured seductively in his ear.

Snuggled into each other's arms, they slowly drifted off to sleep. Many hours later, dawn had already broken and the sun was shining into Michaela's room, she woke up. Sully's body heat was almost choking her, this promised to be lovely in winter, when the weather would be cold and he would keep her warm in his tight embrace. But now, in summer, she was feeling too hot, and with that heat, her urges surged all through her body. She stretched her legs, sticking them out from under the covers, to cool down a little bit. She wondered if Sully really would appreciate it if she were to wake him up? Yet every evening, before going to sleep, he had recommended her to wake him whenever she was feeling on edge, longing not only for his touch, but also to join with him.

She cuddled up to him, pushing herself against him, feeling that he was in some intermediate state, she mused. Sully, in his half-sleep, felt her rubbing herself against him and his reaction was immediate. With a groan, he tightened his embrace even more and answered her movement, getting very close to her centre, making her go almost crazy with longing. She reached down and started stroking him. Sully, in turn, also reached down and felt her moistness. Moving on top of her, he slowly entered. It was smooth and slippery as usual, with a soft moan he locked himself in this position, marvelling that at every encounter, they seemed to fit into each other like the pieces of a puzzle. Michaela wrapped her legs around him, she giggled at the strange sight they must make, but also realising that within the four walls of her room, they could do whatever they pleased, sight or no sight, she couldn't care less...

Slowly working their way to their mutual release, touching and caressing each other in their most sensitive spots, his thrusts became more and more powerful. Michaela revelled in the massage her was giving to her centre, and, sensing she was reaching her peak, she let out the usual _almost there_, trying to remain silent but unfortunately not completely succeeding. She feared that her high, unladylike squeal could yet be heard by her mother at the other end of the corridor. With each encounter, the sensations they enjoyed were getting ever so intense. Michaela wondered where this would eventually end, at one moment or the other, she reckoned, they should reach levels of enjoyment where any further increase would not be possible anymore...

Sully did not have such musings, he was once again lost in his passion for her, his emotions were running wild, crazy with love for her, he was racing towards another violent pinnacle, and, when he felt his wife going over the edge, he could not hold back any longer and let himself go, his convulsions intense but full of marvellous feelings of happiness. _"Arrrggghhh, arrrggghhh,"_ he groaned, attempting to stifle the sound, aware of the open window and, even though it was early morning, he knew Martha and Harrison would already be up and about in the kitchen. And what about his mother-in-law, he thought. She would also have an open window and, in the silence of the dawn, sounds carried far...

After their heated amorous activities, they dozed off again, only to wake up a few hours later, ravenously hungry. Sully opened his eyes first. Looking down at his sleeping wife, waves of happiness and gratitude washed over him once more, he truly felt he was the happiest man to wander the earth and he prayed and begged all forces in power, to please allow him to make their marriage a success. A life without Michaela would not be worth living, it was as if he had been waiting his entire life for her to enter his world, to bring him these unbelievable, happy feelings, a passion that he had never known. The urge to protect and shield her from harm was all overpowering, almost choking him with love for her. He felt her stir in his arms.

She opened her eyes and looked straight into the ocean blue of her beloved husband. "That was marvellous, Sully," meaning their previous union, "thank you so much." "Thank you for waking me when you needed me," he whispered, "never in my life have I been woken in this way, I can't describe how that makes me feel, it is beyond words." As if on cue, both their stomachs gurgled. Laughing out loud, she called out: "Mr Sully! Are you just as hungry as I am?" "Yeah, guess so, the energy we put into our love life needs to be compensated by some solid food, let's get dressed and go down." Heading for the bathroom, they quickly washed, dressed and walked down the stairs, as usual hand in hand, unable to let go of each other, not even be it one minute...


	51. Chapter 51

**Chapter 51** \- _Breakfast with Mrs Elizabeth Quinn - Quinn Residence - Boston _

Elizabeth, who had been reading the _Boston Globe_, heard her daughter come down the stairs, hand in hand with Sully to have breakfast. She chuckled at these two who had been so active not only in the evening, but also in the early morning. She was thrilled that Michaela was blessed with a husband like Sully, after all their talks, Elizabeth was fully accepting him into her family as a worthy son-in-law, whom she felt that it was not unlikely that he would prove to become her favourite son-in-law. "Good morning, Mother," Michaela greeted her mother, walking over to her and giving her mother a peck on the cheek. "Morning, Mrs Quinn," Sully followed suit. "Good morning Michaela, Mr Sully," Elizabeth returned. "Please sit down, I reckon you must be hungry," she remarked dryly.

Sully immediately caught on. So she had heard them... He could only hope that Michaela would not realise what her mother meant with her dry remark, he wanted to spare his wife the embarrassment of her mother knowing exactly what they had been up to... But luckily Michaela was too busy inspecting the food, being so hungry, she was only intent on deciding what she was going to pile on her plate for a start. Sully looked at his mother-in-law and felt a slight blush cover his cheek. Elizabeth noticed it and found it more than endearing, this young man who made her daughter radiate with such happiness. To soothe Sully that she was completely in the picture and fully approving, Elizabeth gave him a slight nod of her head, as if she wanted to tell him: _don't worry, Mr Sully, I know all about it and I'm more than happy for you two..._

Fully unaware of the silent understanding taking place between her mother and her husband, Michaela had filled a plate with food and was already eagerly digging into it. Sully followed her example and picked up the thermos with coffee. "Care for some coffee, _hesta-noo'otse?_" he softly asked her. Elizabeth, whose hearing was extremely good, looked up and asked him: "What did you call your wife just now, Mr Sully?" Michaela smiled at her mother. "He said _hesta-noo'otse_, Mother, it is Cheyenne for _heartsong_, and _heartsong_ is something like _dear_, or _darling_, maybe also _sweetheart_," she explained, proud of her husband's knowledge of the Cheyenne language. Sully nodded, Michaela's explanation was exactly what it was. Turning to him, Michaela indicated she would very much like some coffee too. _"Hesta-noo'otse,"_ Elizabeth tried to say the word and got it right at the first attempt. Sully was awed, normally people did not succeed first hand to say a Cheyenne word. "It's a beautifully sounding word," she commented. "Yes, it is," Michaela agreed. She was amused to see how Sully was digging into his food, he was ravenous as well, she wasn't the only one.

Elizabeth had to laugh, "You two seem very hungry," she remarked. "I guess being newlyweds stimulates the appetite?" she teased. Michaela blushed, she knew what her mother was insinuating. "Oh Mother," she sighed, "stop making me blush." "Don't worry Michaela, I'm just too happy to see you being so radiant, smiling that lovely smile of yours and laughing out loud so often. You never were a very exuberant person, you know that and, seeing you the way you are now, just makes me the happiest mother in the world." "It's all thanks to you Mother, if you had not seen the ad in the paper seeking a doctor for the hospital in Colorado Springs, I might never have applied for the position. Remember you hoped I would find a suitable husband there? Well, what do you think? Have I succeeded?" "You have more than succeeded, Michaela," her mother agreed, "I must say, I like your Mr Sully a great deal." "Can we talk about something else, please," Sully cut in, getting uncomfortable at so much praise. "Sorry Sully, but we are only telling the truth, you'll have to live with that happening from time to time," Michaela defended her and her mother's banter.

"What are your plans for today, Michaela and Mr Sully?" Elizabeth enquired. "We were thinking of going to the ocean front," Michaela answered, "there are some places I would like to show Sully and we might go for a swim in one of those sheltered bays outside of town." "The weather is going to be hot today, so I think you might have an excellent idea there. For this evening, we are having dinner just the three of us, unless you would like to invite someone else, Michaela?" "No, not really Mother, I love to be just with you and Sully. Tomorrow already we will have to take the flight back home."

Sully was flattered that Michaela referred to his house and Colorado Springs as _home_, having lived there for just a few months, she had abandoned Boston as being _home_ and fully accepted his homestead as being her home now. "If you want, ask Harrison for the keys of that car that is in the garage, I do not go anywhere today and if you want to go outside of town, you might be better off going there by car," Elizabeth offered. Michaela was pleased, it would be so much more pleasant to have their own means of transportation than trying to fetch subways and buses. "Thank you Mother," Michaela beamed with gratitude. "Why don't you go to the kitchen and ask Martha to prepare a picnic for you?" Elizabeth proposed. "Excellent idea, Mother," Michaela agreed and, getting up, headed for the kitchen, not after nodding to Sully: "See you later, Sully."

As soon as Michaela was gone, Elizabeth addressed Sully. "You make Michaela very happy, Mr Sully, that is plain to see. Thank you. I have never seen her so radiant, never heard her laugh out loud so often and so much and I believe that you are having a lot of fun together as well?" Sully blushed, "I hope we don't disturb you, Mrs Quinn," he excused himself. "Not at all, I've been young too and I am thrilled that all goes so well between the two of you." "Michaela is amazing, Mrs Quinn, she has brought me happiness and emotions that I did not know existed," Sully confirmed, "there is nothing I would not do to make her happy." Elizabeth smiled, "Now why do I believe you on your word, Mr Sully?" she said teasingly.

Sully smiled, "There are no words to describe what I feel for her. When I met her, something happened to me. The love I feel for her, keeps growing, I mean, I love Michaela each day more. And what is more, she is an excellent doctor, in the hospital they all love her a lot. I often accompany her to the children's ward, because there are many children who never have visitors. I used to go there a lot in the evening after work, to tell stories to these children. And now Michaela comes with me, we have a lot in common where children are concerned." "Would you really give up your job to give Michaela the possibility to continue her doctoring if ever you have a child together?" "Yes," Sully answered in all honesty, "I would, because Michaela is, above all, a doctor. I think she would be a fantastic mom, but I feel she should not give up her doctoring, she needs that. So I will gladly take care of our child, or children for that same matter." "I believe you have a lovely house?" "Well, it is a very old house, completely made out of wood, but I have renovated it and it offers all comfort. It's been in my family since the late 19th century. There are many rooms, please come and stay with us soon, Mrs Quinn, I know Michaela would love to show you where she lives now." "I will definitely come soon," Elizabeth promised.

In the kitchen, Michaela was happy to find Martha and Harrison, the two people she had known all her life. "He seems a very nice young man, your husband," Martha commented. Michaela blushed, "Yes, he is, he makes me very happy." Harrison looked at her, "We can see that, Miss Michaela, and I must say, I like him very, very much. He is nothing like the husbands of your other sisters, whereby I must say that I also like Mr Richard, your sister Rebecca's husband, very much." Michaela smiled. Together with Anne Harper, her first teacher, these two people had helped her in their own modest way to grow up and become the young woman and doctor she was now. "If ever you want to do some travelling, please come to Colorado Springs to visit me," Michaela invited them. "The house where I live now is very big. It is made of wood and there are plenty rooms for guests. It has been in Sully's family since 1870, and Sully has renovated it beautifully, very comfortable." Martha was busy preparing the picnic and, when she finished, she showed Michaela what she had prepared. It all looked delicious, and Michaela gladly gave her a compliment on the delicious food. Martha had packed it all in a coolbox with frozen ice-packs to keep the food cool. "Harrison, my mother said you could give me the keys for the car that is in the garage, so that Sully and I can drive out of town along the ocean front. We would like to go for a swim, it being such lovely weather." Harrison walked over to the key cabinet and took out the keys. "The car is tanked up, so you should not have to worry about that," he told her. Michaela accepted the keys and picked up the coolbox with the food.

Heading back to the parlour where she found her mother and Sully having a quiet talk, Michaela showed the coolbox, asking Sully to come and prepare the few things they would need for their day's trip to the beach. She gave the car keys to Sully, assuming he would know better than she did how to drive this car and where to find all the buttons and handles one normally needs for driving. Michaela was so used to her own car, that any other car scared her a little bit. Putting the coolbox in the hall, they went upstairs to fetch their things.

In Michaela's room, the first thing they did, was crash into each other's arms, covering their faces with kisses, ending up with a kiss so deep, that they broke apart panting and dizzy with love for each other. They looked at each other and burst out laughing, "No, no _quickie_ now," Michaela stuttered, "we should get going, come on, Mr Sully, time's a-wasting... And don't tell me you were not thinking of a _quickie_, I know you by now..." Sully laughed out loud, "You know me too well, but you're right, I was thinking of that, but we'll see if around that bay of yours there is a sheltered spot where we can have said _quickie_," he anticipated. "You mean open air sex?" Michaela giggled, "oh Sully, is there ever anything else on your mind than making love?" "Told you, at the moment this is all I can think of, but I promise you that it will abate, I'll get back to normal and then I think you might complain that something is missing..." "Could well be," she agreed, not really wanting to cut down on that marvellous pastime...


	52. Chapter 52

**Chapter 52** \- _August 12, a 'quickie' in a cave - Beach and bay fun - outside of Boston_

Packed with all their things, they took out the car. Michaela showed the way to the secluded bay she had in mind. After about an hour's drive, they arrived at their destination. Sully was awed by the beauty of the spot, it was indeed a sheltered beach, small, not very easily accessible, so they left the car on the small parking in the shade of a tree and descended to the sandy beach, taking the coolbox and their bathing gear with them. As Michaela had expected, they were all by themselves. No one ventured out here, there was nothing in a ten-mile radius, no shops, no restaurants, nothing, and most people did not want to be too far from places where they would find food and drink.

Sully looked around. At the back of the small beach, there were some rocks, and, to his great joy, a small cave. The fun could go on, the _quickie_ would certainly be possible in that sheltered spot, where they would be unseen from the road. He shed all his clothes, and, standing there all naked, looked over at Michaela. "We can just as well go for a swim in the nude," he said, "there's not a single soul to be seen here." "No, I'd rather not," she countered, her shyness kicking in and scared they might be caught by someone coincidentally passing by. Sully took out his trunks and slipped them on. Michaela, in turn, took out her bathing suit and shed her clothes, standing naked for just a moment before covering herself with it. Sully looked at her. A red bathing suit, fitting her like a glove, knowing what was underneath and more than that, knowing the pleasures to be had by taking the suit off her, caused him to be once again fully aroused.

Sully, picking up a big towel, walked over to her. "D'you know there is a small cave there where we could have the _quickie?_" he whispered seductively in her ear, continuing: "and no one can see us there, it is completely out of view from the road." She looked in the direction that his head had been gesturing. It was true, there was a small cave. And he was right, no one could look inside from the road, the cave was conveniently tucked away in the wall of rocks at the back of the small beach. "Okay, let's have our _quickie,_" she agreed, quite aroused at first seeing her husband naked, and now seeing him with his big arousal in his trunks, not minding at all to feel her husband joining his body with hers. Sully took the big towel with him to the cave and spread it on the ground. It was lovely and cool in there, this was the first time they would make love in the open air, Michaela thought.

"Sully, this is the first time we'll make love in the open air," she said, awed at her own boldness to give in to her longing for him. Sully smiled his broad grin at her. "There's always a first time for everything," he said in his usual joking tone. He stepped out of his trunks and lay down on the towel he had spread out. As always, his member stood up pointing to the upper wall of the cave. "You want me to be on top?" she asked, also stepping out of her bathing suit. "Yeah," he said, "you'll be more comfortable, I'm afraid the ground would be too hard on your back, with just a thin towel. So just straddle me and let's have our _quickie_. Are you ready?" She straddled him and he moved his hand to her centre to check on her readiness. "My oh my, Mrs Sully, what have you been thinking of to be so moist?" he teased her. "Same thing as you, Mr Sully, you must have been thinking of a lot of things, because when I look at the gentleman down there, he seems to be ready for action."

They burst into a fit of giggles, laughing out loud, Sully loved the sound of her laughter and was proud that Mrs Quinn had told him that she had never seen her daughter so blatantly happy, laughing so often. He vowed to always make enough little jokes to keep that smile on her face. He moaned when she came down on him, moving slowly, teasing him, breathing in the fresh smell of the ocean air, feeling the morning sun on her naked back, it was all so exhilarating that she almost forgot where they were and that there would always be the risk of other people coming down to the little beach, disturbing their open air performance...

"Do you want a quick _quickie_, a medium length _quickie_ or a slow _quickie?_" she enquired, "you have a choice of three _quickies_ today, Mr Sully, you may choose the one you like." "Sure enough Mrs Sully, I would like a quick _quickie_ now, then I would like to go for a swim, after that I think I'll need something to eat and drink, take a nap in the sun with my stunning wife in her stunning bathing suit in my stunning arms and, when I wake up, I would like a slow _quickie_ here in this cave again and after that, another swim to cool down and have a quick wash. How's that sound?" "Sounds like a plan," she agreed and immediately sped up her movements, to bring them both to completion.

As usual, it was pure bliss. Making love three or four times a day, was something they both had never expected that they would be doing. But then, neither had expected this physical intimacy to be what they had found out it to be. Never in their wildest dreams had they ever dreamt that making love was something so powerful, so unbelievably wonderful, that now that they had discovered it, no force on earth could keep them from not joining whenever they could. From his friends, Sully had gotten the idea that this was something they enjoyed a few times a week in the privacy of a bedroom and from her friends, Michaela remembered having had information along the same lines. Finding themselves with an insatiable appetite for each other, was fabulous but scary at the same time. It crossed her mind, that, once at home, she was going to look up some statistics on this subject on the internet. Surely there must have been one or more fools somewhere in the world who had gone to the trouble of making a study of this...

The open air performance proved to be exhilarating. Sully caressed her in all the right places and while he was rubbing her centre with his one hand, the other was fondling her breast and her nipple. Michaela leaned backward, first of all because then she would feel his member rubbing her inner walls even better and, secondly, she could reach his scrotum and the muscle behind it, knowing he loved it when she touched him there. _Almost there_ she whispered, _yeeesss, yeeesss, Suullyy!_ Her squeals drove him crazy, he grunted and let go, _"Arrrggghhh, arrrggghhh,"_ his body convulsing with the usual spasms, his manhood being encircled by her inner muscles, they relished their mutual excitement, the open air performance almost over and crowned with success...


	53. Chapter 53

**Chapter 53** \- _A lovely swim and a picnic - Beach and bay fun - outside of Boston_

"That was good, thank you Sully," she panted, having let herself drop down on his chest, kissing and sucking his nipples one after the other. "Mmm," he mumbled, "it is always good with you, the time that it is not good, still has to come, if at least that is ever gonna happen..." Calming down, they looked for their swimming gear to go for a swim. Kissing and caressing each other, they stumbled out to the water. The shallowness had allowed the water to be by far not as cold as the water further out in the ocean, the secluded bay really was a little gem, Sully mused. Slowly they dipped in, under the water, Sully slightly pulled down his trunks to have a quick wash of himself. Michaela, watching what he was doing, thought that to be a very good idea and, looking up towards the road to see if there were, by any chance, spectators ogling her, decided to do the same, since there was nobody in sight.

Sully moved over to her and stood with his back to the road, to shield his wife just in case of prying eyes... Michaela slid down her bathing suit and wanting to wash herself, she found Sully's hand already there, helping her get clean. It was heaven all over again. He bend down and took her nipple in his mouth, teasing it with his tongue, all the while _washing_ her centre. "You would take any excuse to touch me, wouldn't you, Sully?" she moaned. "What about you?" he returned, "as far as I have been able to observe, you're just as often on fire as I am." "You're right there, but it's all your own fault, you're so darn gorgeous that every time I see you, I get the hots and then I only want one thing and that is..." "...to make love with me," he completed. They shook with laughter. She pulled up her bathing suit and they swam around the shallow water, splashing each other and enjoying the warmth of the sun and the coolness of the water. Life couldn't get any better, they thought.

After a while, they left the water and fell down on the towel and the sand. Michaela rummaged in her bag and dug out a big bottle of suncream oil, and started to rub it all over her body. Her silky white skin did not allow for much sun, she would be crimson if she did not take that precaution. Sully helped her, and putting some suncream on himself, he blessed her for always thinking of the right things to drag along. They reached out for the coolbox and started eating, feeding each other bits and pieces of the tasty sandwiches Martha had prepared, drinking the water from the small bottles, all in all, getting less and less hungry and more and more drowsy from the delicious _quickie_, the lovely swim, the tasty food and the evident lack of sleep at night since they just couldn't stop making love at the most impossible hours of the night and the early morning... Michaela yawned and let herself fall back on the big towel. Sully immediately scooted beside her and encircled her in his arms. He carefully took a second towel to cover her body, anxious that the sun would give her a sunburn. Thus entwined, it didn't take long for them to fall asleep.

The nap was most welcome. When they woke up, they felt refreshed and rested, ready to face the rest of their afternoon. Picking up some more water to hydrate themselves, they laughed at the sight they made, sleepy faces, tangled hair, in bathing gear... "What's next on the programme, Mr Sully?" she asked. He looked at her. Was she playing with him or did she really not remember that now came the slow _quickie_ in the cave. He motioned towards the cave. "The slow _quickie_," he said, picking up the towel and heading for the cave. Walking there, he scolded himself, he should have asked her first of course! Turning around, he faced her. "Only if you want, Michaela, you know I'm ready any moment of the day or the night, but you might not want to make love right now, please tell me honestly what you want?" "Slow _quickie_ is fine, you should know by now that we walk the same path, that we often like the same things and, above all, that we like the same high frequency of making love, so yes, slow _quickie_ it is, let's get in there!"

The same scenario as in the morning was playing out. He spread the towel, lay down, and their dance of love could begin. Totally oblivious to the rest of the world, they were lucky that no other visitors came to disturb their peace, because they were so carried away by their passion for each other, that they would not have noticed any other presence until it would have been way too late.

But as it was, they were alone and could enjoy each other to the fullest. Sully joined them and, when after a while he heard the familiar _almost there_, he made her turn around and straddle him. Picking up the massage where he had left off, it didn't take long for her to signal that she was going over the edge. _"Yeesss, yeesss,"_ she hissed as she rode the waves of pleasure to their fullest. He felt her spasms and let himself go completely. The convulsions of his body whilst having his peak, forced his grunts out of his throat in quick succession, _"arrrggghhh, arrrggghhh, help me, this is too good,"_ he managed to stammer, catching her in his arms as she let herself drop onto him, totally spent, outrageously happy.

For hours there had not been one single soul around, apart from the two of them, so after all Michaela couldn't care less and got up without putting her bathing suit back on. Sully chuckled, she was getting bolder and bolder, the promise of the future took shape and he knew that on the point of making love, they would never have any difference of opinion. He followed her to the water, eager to hold her and swim with her in his arms. The water was lovely and warm, he floated on his back and opened his arms to her. She moved over to him and, together they let themselves float in heavenly union.

After a while, they returned to their towel on the beach. "Do you think we should get dressed?" she asked. "D'you want to?" he returned. "No, not especially, if someone should unexpectedly venture down here, we can just quickly put on our bathing suits. Put them here, so that we can pick them up and put them on immediately if that should happen." They did the coolbox with the picnic some more justice, the things Martha had prepared were lovely and tasty, kept cool in the coolbox, the same as the drinking water, they knew they had to drink enough to prevent getting dehydrated.

"What time do we fly tomorrow? Is someone driving us out to the airport?" Sully asked. "I believe the flight leaves at 11 in the morning, and I guess Harrison will drive us out. I don't think Mother will come, she hates saying goodbye at stations and airports. She'll say goodbye at home." "I hope she comes to visit us soon," Sully said, "I like your Ma a lot, Michaela. I dreaded meeting her, but all in all, it has been a lovely time with her." "You didn't mind her prying?" "She only did that because she loves you, she wants to be sure you've made the right choice marrying me. I can fully understand that." "I'm glad she likes you, it means a lot to me, you know. I've never been very close to my mother, but now that I'm married, that might change. We might, after all, still build up a normal mother-daughter relationship. All thanks to you, Mr Sully," Michaela concluded her musings. "Naw, not thanks to me," Sully denied, "it just all happens that way, but it went well and I am very happy about that." They snuggled into each other's arms, their lips found each other and their tongues danced the eternal dance of love. It was all fantastic, she thought.

They rested on the towel in the sand for some more time and decided it was time to pack up and return to Boston. The drive was peaceful and relaxed, not much traffic so they soon arrived in Beacon Hill. Parking the car and taking out their belongings, they walked in through the kitchen. Martha looked at them and, noticing the slightly pink colour on Michaela's cheeks, she chuckled. "I gather you two had a good time on the beach, Michaela, you even got some colour on your cheeks!" she said. "Oh Martha! It was absolutely lovely and thank you, thank you so much for the delicious picnic. Here is the coolbox, we finished it all! But now I want to get out of these sandy clothes and wash the salt off my skin," she announced, taking Sully's hand to make him come up to her room with her. Martha smiled when she saw the happy couple disappear through the door. Ah, how beautiful to witness young love, she thought.

In the parlour, Mrs Quinn had heard the return of her daughter and husband. When Michaela stuck her head around the door of the parlour to announce their return, her mother looked up and said: "Oh hello Michaela, I heard you come back, I'll see you later for dinner, okay?" guessing correctly that they wanted to take a shower to wash off the salt on their skins and get dressed for dinner. Elizabeth chuckled, convinced that Michaela and Sully would take said shower together and have fun caressing and kissing each other, and even doing some more loving... Her thoughts flew back to her own honeymoon, how fabulous it had been, both inexperienced, not to say innocent... But Josef, already a doctor then, had known enough to make it a most memorable honeymoon. Thinking of her husband, her eyes filled with tears, she missed him so much, but she never spoke of her sadness.

Washing and above all caressing each other's bodies, Michaela and Sully were, as usual, immensely enjoying their shower together. They kissed all those spots which they knew to be highly sensitive, causing sensations of exquisite pleasure. Sully went down on his knees to give her centre his special mouth and tongue treatment, making her squeal with passion and delight when she had her peak, and once her spasms ridden out, Michaela, in turn, knelt down to gratify him with the same bliss. Coming over the edge, Sully almost lost his balance, it was all so intense that his knees went weak, he could hardly keep himself up. With the warm water streaming down their faces, having regained his composure, Sully leaned over to her ear, whispering: "You do know I love you, don't you, my _hesta-noo'otse_, my 'Chaela?"

Michaela, hearing herself being addressed in this way, the husky voice of her husband betraying the emotion he felt, almost melted. "Oh Sully, if only you knew how much I love you, what I feel for you, seems to be getting stronger and stronger each day, saying simply I love you is not enough to express how much I adore you and how devoted I am to you." "Same here," Sully murmured, tightening his embrace and searching her lips for another, scorching kiss. "It's almost like being on a honeymoon, don't you think so?" she reflected when they broke apart, "Yeah, it sure is," he agreed, smiling his dimpled grin at her, his ocean-blue eyes filled with love for her, his wife, his extraordinary, passionate lover, his one and only _heartsong_.


	54. Chapter 54

**Chapter 54** \- _A farewell dinner - Quinn Residence - Boston_

Refreshed, dressed and completely sated after their last amorous antics, the newlyweds descended the stairs to join Michaela's mother in the dining room. Hearing them approach, Elizabeth looked up and was struck once more by her daughter's radiant facial expression and her husband's good looks. Having come to know Sully a bit better, Elizabeth was convinced now that Michaela was going to have a bright and altogether very happy future with this handsome young husband of hers. He was indeed special, never had Elizabeth come across a young man with qualities such as Sully possessed. After all, she mused, she couldn't care less that he didn't have a university degree or a high-ranking position with some big company chasing huge profits... What counted was the man himself, and from what Elizabeth had observed so far, this Mr Sully was quite exceptional. Michaela was lucky to have stumbled upon such a male gem...

Sitting down at the table, Elizabeth addressed the couple: "And? How was your day on the beach? Do I see it right that you have even gotten yourself a slight suntan, Michaela?" she teased her daughter, whose delicate white skin could better not be exposed to bright sunlight, for fear of getting most painfully burned by it. "Sully creamed me in all over," Michaela said, slightly blushing at what her words were insinuating. "He did, now didn't he?" Elizabeth dryly stated, chuckling at her daughter's embarrassment. "That was very thoughtful of you, Mr Sully. Sunshine and Michaela's skin just don't go together, as a child, we had to shield her from the sun, for fear that she would catch the most awful sunburns," Elizabeth said, wistfully thinking back at the precocious, but oh so beautiful little girl Michaela had been.

Sully also chuckled at his wife's lovely words, he was sure that Elizabeth was visualising the two of them on the beach, in swimming gear, creaming in each other's bodies, delighting in the contact and the sensations such activity provoked in them. He looked at Elizabeth and grinned, he had guessed right, she was having these thoughts... Elizabeth could hardly stop herself from laughing out loud, this son-in-law sure had the ability to communicate without words not only with his wife, but also with her, his mother-in-law. Warm waves of happiness washed over her. She intended to put all at work to make her visit to Colorado Springs occur as soon as possible, with joy she anticipated the pleasure of being around these two for a few days and, who knows, even weeks? She promised herself there and then that, if ever Michaela and Sully were to be blessed with a child, she would go and stay with her daughter to help out for the first few weeks as well. "You look very pretty, with a little tan," she complimented her daughter. "Thank you, Mother," Michaela said, smiling her radiant smile.

They filled their plates with the delicious food prepared by Elizabeth' staff. Sully, now well versed in the way how to satisfy his hunger by serving himself repeatedly with small portions, looked at Michaela, who, in turn, was watching him, amused by his tactics of not piling up lots of food on his plate, which might be considered rude, but by serving himself little at a time, returning frequently to the main platters to pick up some more. Feeling quite at ease with his two table companions, Sully picked up a small piece on his fork and, turning to Michaela, he offered: "Taste this, _hesta-noo'otse_, it is simply delicious." Elizabeth cut in: "Like all newlyweds, feeding each other bits and pieces, I do remember having great fun at that with your father, Michaela." "We just mentioned to each other today that we feel as if we are on a honeymoon, Mother," Michaela said, "It sure feels like that," Sully cut in, smiling at both mother and daughter. "Could you go for a swim too?" Elizabeth enquired. "Oh yes, we did. The bay is very sheltered, the huge waves of the ocean do not get to it, so yes, we had a lovely swim." Thinking of their second swim in the nude, as well as the _quickies_ in the cave, Michaela blushed. Elizabeth, wise with life's experience, knew exactly what they had been up to and was more than pleased to know that, as far as intimacy was concerned, all was well with this couple. They apparently thoroughly enjoyed being together...

After dinner, Sully's most ardent wish was to sweep up his wife in his arms, run upstairs and rip her and his own clothes off to be skin-to-skin with her. What else he wanted to do to her, was just a question of asking what she wanted and fulfilling her every desire. Unfortunately, knowing the rules of society, he was aware that he would have to curb his fiery longing for his wife for some more time. With a sigh, he stood up to head for the parlour for an after-dinner conversation with his two lovely table companions. Michaela had noticed her husband's sigh and silently promised him and herself that she would do all she could to keep the upcoming after-dinner conversation as short as reasonably possible. Elizabeth and Michaela sat down in one of the big, comfortable wingback chairs. Sully, hating to be at a distance from his wife, sat down on the armrest, so that he could immediately circle her shoulders with his arm, looking down at her and, bending his head, placing a long kiss on top of her head. He closed his eyes, letting his head rest upon hers, inhaling the scent of her hair, silently conveying his love to her in the kiss.

Michaela raised her hand and laid it on top of Sully's hand resting on her shoulder. Elizabeth, watching their interaction, was moved by the sincerity and pureness of their love, so evident from the way they touched and caressed each other. Yes, she thought, this was a love so deep, that it was going to last forever, they would weather their lives' storms together, they would share good and bad times and they would overcome any difficult moment in their lives through exactly that same love. Their foundation was solid, it would sustain them for the rest of their lives.

"Michaela, what time does your flight leave tomorrow morning?" she asked her daughter. "At 11, Mother." "Harrison will drive you out to the airport then, we will say our goodbyes here, after having eaten breakfast together. You will excuse me, Mr Sully, for not accompanying you, but I do not particularly like either train stations or airports," she explained her absence. "Yes, Michaela has told me so. It's no problem at all, Mrs Quinn, and anyhow, we hope to see you soon in Colorado Springs for a prolonged visit," Sully assured her. "And here I thought that sons-in-law always were at odds with their mothers-in-law!" Elizabeth joked. "That does not go for me, Mrs Quinn, I can assure you that I have very much appreciated my stay here. I want to thank you for your hospitality and I look forward to return the favour and welcome you in our house very soon." "Wouldn't you rather call me _Elizabeth?_" she offered. "It's not up to me to propose that to you Mrs Quinn, but I am very flattered that you would allow me to address you by your first name. Do you think you might get used to just call me _Sully_ then, and drop the _Mister_ part?"

Michaela was proud of her husband who displayed such excellent manners _vis-à-vis_ her mother, who she knew to be very sensitive to etiquette and rules of society. Elizabeth too was pleasantly surprised by Sully's demeanour, her esteem of him getting higher and higher. "Well, there we are then, to _Elizabeth and Sully!_ We need to toast to that!" she joked. "Let me go and ask Harrison or Martha if they have anything we can toast with," Sully offered and, with those words, he stood up and headed for the kitchen.

Elizabeth, alone with her daughter, looked at her and softly said: "He is very special, isn't he, Michaela?" "Yes, Mother, he is," she answered. "And you do thoroughly enjoy each other, if I'm not mistaken?" "Oh Mother," Michaela sighed, "you know how I am, I am quite reserved when it comes to expressing my feelings, but I can assure you that Sully is every woman's dream." "Yes," Elizabeth mused, "I can readily believe and understand that. Was your day on the beach a success, today?" "More than that," Michaela replied, pondering if she wanted to tell her mother what _being a success_ really meant... She cleared her throat. "Uhm, well... we were all alone, hardly anyone knows about this very hidden, secluded spot on the ocean front and, uhm... there was a cave in the rocks at the back of the beach where we were completely private..." she stopped, hoping her mother would catch the underlying meaning. "How lovely," Elizabeth remarked, noticing her daughter's embarrassment, "don't worry dear, we have all been young one time. I know what it is to be a young newlywed, just make sure you enjoy yourselves. I fully understand what you mean by _being a success..._" she laughed lovingly at her daughter, feeling that the fragile bond they shared was getting tighter and tighter.

Sully came back from the kitchen with a small bottle of Champagne and three flutes. "Here's something to bring out a toast with!" he announced proudly. "Brilliant!" Elizabeth reacted enthusiastically. "But I thought you never drank anything, Sully?" "At some very special occasions I do," he confessed, "and this, I think is one of them." "Well then, open up that bottle!" Sully grinned and handing the bottle to Michaela, he informed Elizabeth: "I'm not so good at that, Michaela is the expert for this type of thing." "Michaela hardly ever drinks anything alcoholic," Elizabeth mentioned. "But when she does, the result is spectacular," Sully retorted. "Sully!" Michaela was mortified. What would her mother think? That she indulged regularly in drunkenness? Elizabeth interpreted Sully's words at face value and was again very glad that her daughter had found such a marvellous companion. He simply was perfect, in all aspects, Elizabeth thought. In the meantime Michaela had managed to open the bottle and she poured the golden liquid in the flutes. Picking hers up, Michaela looked at her mother and husband and said: "To you two, calling each other _Elizabeth_ and _Sully!_" They clinked glasses and sipped the tasty, bubbly drink.

Michaela, embarrassed that Sully's words might induce her mother to believe that she had taken to drinking, felt she wanted to put things straight. "You know, Mother, two days after our wedding, I moved into Sully's homestead, leaving Mr Lawson's _Gold Nugget_ hotel behind me. Without telling me, Sully had the foresight to buy a bottle of Champagne, to celebrate that very special occasion. It was a big bottle, so we had some left and the next evening, we took another glass. I don't want you to believe that I have taken a drinking habit, Mother, because I really have not!" Elizabeth laughed, "I know Michaela, I was just making fun of you, it's such a treat to hear you laugh out loud, it happened so seldom when you were growing up and now, with Sully at your side, I hear you laugh so often that each time it warms my heart."

Turning to Sully, she pried some more: "And you never drink anything either, Sully? Not even a beer?" "Well, a beer from time to time, but then, if it is available, I prefer the alcohol-free beer. I guess that living with the Cheyenne and hearing about the devastation brought onto the Indians through the centuries by alcoholic drinks, put me off any such drinks for the rest of my life." "Good for you," Elizabeth replied, "lots of trouble comes from drinking. But tell me, your life with the Cheyenne must have influenced you quite a lot, because I must admit that I have never met any young man with your qualities and views on life." "Yes," Sully said, "it did influence me enormously, because they have a totally different outlook on many things, so living for so many years with them, it sure made me into what I am now."

He paused, for a sudden thought struck him. "When you come to visit us, Elizabeth, we will go to the Reservation. I will introduce you to Cloud Dancing and his wife Snow Bird and I will show you where I married your daughter, my beloved wife..." leaning over, he kissed Michaela's head and caressed her cheek, his love and devotion for her written in large letters all over his face.

Michaela felt the relaxation caused by the bubbly drink wash over her. At the same time, with her husband sitting so close, she also felt the familiar longing rising in her body to be skin-to-skin with him. She wondered if he was having the same urges, but she refrained from turning her head to look at him, foreseeing that his eyes would express the same desires, to which they should not give in for the time being. She emptied her flute and, looking at her mother, she announced that it was getting late, so why not call it a day and retire? Elizabeth, fully aware of the chemistry and the attraction between her daughter and her husband, nodded her approval, it was high time to give these two the opportunity to be alone and indulge in their doubtlessly fiery and passionate lovemaking. Inwardly, she smiled, feeling overly happy to have the privilege of witnessing such profound feelings of love. "Yes, tomorrow morning we'll have a nice breakfast and then off you go, back to Colorado Springs!" _"Home,"_ Michaela murmured dreamily, surprised how much she longed to go back. Sully, overhearing her, again felt a wave of pride wash over him, that she already considered his homestead to be her _home_, was one more very rewarding gift of the many she had given him so far. Squeezing her shoulder, he signalled that he had heard and understood. Looking up at him, she smiled, their understanding so perfect that it was almost eerie.


	55. Chapter 55

**Chapter 55** \- _One last quiet night in Michaela's room - Quinn Residence - Boston _

Standing up, Michaela and Sully wished Elizabeth good night and, with all the restraint they could conjure up, they slowly headed out the door and ascended the stairs, hand in hand. At the top of the stairs, they burst into a run, so eager were they to be alone. In her room, after turning the key in its lock, they crashed into each other, kissing ferociously, moaning with pent-up longing and need for each other. "Take off your clothes," Sully urged her, pulling off his own clothes, almost ripping them off, tugging at her blouse and jeans, to which she answered by helping him.

Standing naked in front of each other, they embraced as tightly as they could. "Already after dinner I was dying to go to your room," Sully panted, hardly able to keep from ravishing her there and then, his need so urgent and intense, but at the same time knowing he had to give her time to get ready. "'Chaela, can we have a _quickie_ first, I can't hold on for much longer, I need you so badly?!" he stammered. "Same here," she panted, "I am about to explode," and with those words, she let herself drop down on the bed, stretching her arms out to him, entirely agreeing to forget the preliminaries.

He easily slid in, finally! He took a deep breath. "Won't take long, this is a real _quickie_, hope you don't mind?" "Not at all, I'm desperate with need too, please go on!" she urged him on. He managed to keep the first few thrusts slow, but then he sped up almost immediately, not holding back and violently coming over the edge, trying to stifle his customary grunts...

The urgency of their joining was heaven to Michaela, she loved this feeling of him being so out of control. Her insides tingled with sensations provoked by his powerful thrusts. The convulsions of his body when he came over the edge, simply felt great. Sully fell down on her, bending his head to caress her breast, her nipples, one after the other, giving himself and her an aftermath in guise of a replacement for skipping the preliminaries...

"My god," Michaela hissed, "you drive me crazy, Sully, where is this going to end?" "It will never end, we will continue to please each other in this way for the rest of our lives, you can be sure of that," Sully assured her. "You realise that I will hold you to that, don't you, Sully? I will never agree to cut down on this activity, at least not for many, many years to come... With age, I know we will calm down, but for the time being, forget it..." Sully laughed out loud, "You're like a volcano in full eruption, d'you know that, my _hesta-noo'otse?" _Dropping his voice to a mere whisper, he continued: "I love you, 'Chaela, I promise you I'll do all I can to make our marriage a success, because I can't live one single day without you, even the hours at work are too long, I just need to be close to you all the time..."

He paused, the enormity of their love and the need they had for each other, was more than they had ever witnessed in other couples. At least their friends had never made any mention of such a strong connection. "Same here," she mumbled, "all my thoughts, all day long, are of you only. I know I'll have to focus on other things soon, but that is going to be extremely difficult." "You'll manage, I'm sure of it. Me too, I'll have to gather all my wits to tackle the problems with the equipment in the hospital. We'll soon have to be back at work, we have no choice." Michaela moaned, "As much as I like my job, I like this time with you even more. We should have had a longer honeymoon to really have our fill of each other, as it is now, we'll be back at work and I'll be thinking of you all the long hours that you are in the same building, but out of my reach."

"There's one more thing we should seriously talk about, Michaela," Sully began, "and that is that we are doing nothing at the moment to prevent you from falling pregnant. Do you want to have a child straight away or would you prefer to wait and enjoy each other for some more months?" "Would you like me to go on the pill?" "No, definitely not, shall I use a condom?" "They say it's not so nice to make love with a condom, shall we try it out when we come home? Or otherwise, I can take down the dates of my monthlies, so I will know exactly when it might happen that I fall pregnant," she said. "When is your next monthly due?" he asked, knowing that their love life would have to come to a halt for a few days then, already hating the mere idea of not having his stunning wife fully at his disposal.

"Today we are the 12th, so it could be any day from now on," she said. "So there's little chance that you would already have fallen pregnant," he calculated back in time, "I like that method the best, no hormones for you to take, no condoms for me to put on, just minding the dates and making love in any other way, like we did before we got married." "Or maybe use a condom on the days of which we know it might be possible for me to conceive," she offered as another alternative. "That might be a good solution as well," Sully agreed, "next time I'm near a drug store or a pharmacy, I'll go buy a packet of condoms, seems they come in sizes." "Do we have to measure your uhm... private part in its uhm... aroused state then?" Michaela asked innocently but with great practicality, never yet in her life having been confronted with that kind of problem, but already anticipating another moment of fun with that gorgeous body of his.

"We're supposed to get some sleep," she remarked, "or do we take our time for a slow _encore_ after that heated _quickie_ we just had?" "I wouldn't mind a slow _encore_," Sully whispered, seductively nibbling her ear, continuing: "you didn't reach your peak, don't you want to?!" Michaela giggled, "Of course I want to, what are you waiting for?" and, laughing out loud, they started kissing, touching and caressing each other in all those spots where they knew their passion could be kindled. With his expert fingers, he massaged her centre. It didn't take long before she whispered: _"Go on, almost there, oh yesss, yesss, Suullyy!"_ When he felt her reaching her climax, he joined her and enjoyed the spasms of her inner muscles on his manhood. He then continued his slow thrusts, making her moan with pleasure, her inner walls tingling with the sensations he provoked inside of her.

While his heartbeat increased and his breathing started to come in gushes, a fiery passion was building up inside of him. After some minutes, the urge to increase the speed of his thrusts could no longer be ignored and, letting go of all thought, he forgot the world around him, only obeying to what mother nature commandeered him to do.

Michaela, knees bended, noticed the increase in speed of his thrusts, signalling her that he was nearing his release. She moved her hips up to counter his movements, relishing the tingling feelings he provoked in her. She realised that she would never get enough of these sensations, and, when she heard his customary grunts, she let go as well, enjoying the intense feelings engulfing her entire body and soul.

After a while, they came down from their respective highs and giggled like a pair of teenagers on a naughty date. "That was fabulous, Mrs Sully, thank you for this fantastic slow _encore_," he murmured in her ear, cupping her breasts in his hands, kissing her with gusto. "Thank you, Sully, I really enjoyed the _encore_ as well, but now we really should calm down and sleep, tomorrow we'll be quite busy, travelling almost all day," she said. "And no chance of being able to make love at any time during the travelling," he added, knowing that he was going to miss that for the many hours that there would be no possibility, not even for a _quickie_. "Don't forget to wake me if you have special needs during the night, Mrs Sully, you know I will always answer my _hesta-noo'otse's_ demands," he urged her. "I will definitely wake you, Mr Sully, don't you worry, making love with you in the early morning is something so special, I think you have to count on being obliged to do that for a long time to come. Something like _a husband's duty,_" she joked.

"Wasn't there a saying back in the 19th century about a _wifely duty?_" he enquired. "That still exists, I believe," she giggled. "Funny that people should think of this as a _duty,_" she mused, "does that mean that not all people enjoy it the same way we do?" "What I've heard, is that a man must do a lot of foreplay before the woman is ready to make love. Otherwise she's too dry and then it hurts. But with you, I've never had to do that, you're always ready, that's why I was so surprised in the beginning, every time I touched you down there, you were ready. I was heeding my friends' words and wanted to do it all right with you, but so far there has never been a problem." "That's because you're the sexiest man I've ever met..." "...said she, the woman with lots and lots of experience...!" Sully completed her sentence for her, laughing out loud.

"Isn't it funny that we, being both virgins, have been able to have such a fantastic love life right from the start? And we keep on learning," she said. "Yeah, but we had very good tutors, you had Snow Bird who prepared you and I had Cloud Dancing. And believe me, Cloud Dancing didn't weigh his words, he came straight to the point and told me exactly what I was supposed to do to make our first time a success." "That salve he gave you was also very useful, it eased my pain a lot, I think, because I hardly felt anything." "The fact that we had already been naked together and leading each other to reach our peaks, also helped. We were at ease with our nakedness, there was no awkwardness, so from there on, it only could get better." Michaela yawned, "Time for a long, long night of blissful sleep in my gorgeous husband's arms," she murmured and, snuggling into his warm body, she heaved a deep sigh and relaxed. Sleep would come easy to them...


	56. Chapter 56

**Chapter 56** \- _A morning's 'quickie' - Michaela's room - Quinn Residence - Boston _

Sully woke up first, surprised that his wife had not woken him up during the night with any special demands. This was unusual, but he did not mind. He had slept beautifully, Michaela's body heat was so soothing and relaxing that his dreams had been peaceful and pleasant too. He listened to her steady breathing. She was his life, he thought, she had brought him what he had been longing for his entire life, a partner, a mate, a companion who would stand by him, who would see that his every need would be fulfilled, and, last but not least, she was going to be the mother of his children. His children! The thought alone made him dizzy with anticipation, how marvellous would it be to have children with Michaela, to see them grow up into beautiful young adults, helping them choose their way in life. He dreamed of a daughter, as beautiful as her mother...

A less lovely thought suddenly crossed his mind. At one certain point in her life, this same daughter would bring home a _beau_, or even not just one, but many _beaux_, one after the other, Sully's entire being rejected that eventuality. No daughter of his was going to be made love to by no man, be he her _beau_ or not, he didn't like the idea one bit. At the same time he heard an inner voice laughing loudly at him, almost mocking him, calling out: _you can't stop that happening, better take it as it comes, it's life, it's nature, men and women get together, they look for their mate, just like you did with your 'hesta-noo'otse'!_ Sully sighed, that voice of reason was right... He knew that he would resign himself to mother nature's laws, when the time would come... But for now, that moment was still far away, many years remained for him to prepare himself for such an unpleasant occurrence... And what was more, with Michaela at his side, he knew he would be able to cope...

She stirred. Her husband's body heat was lovely and reassuring. Her dreams had been pleasant and peaceful, the same as for Sully, the man who, in such a short time, had become the most important person in her life. Little did she know that he would continue to be that until their dying day... Opening her eyes, she looked into the cloudless blue sky of her husband's eyes, he smiled down at her, "Did you sleep well, my _hesta-noo'otse?_" he asked her tenderly. "Oh Sully, I have never slept so well, I'm so sorry, there were no special urges for which I needed your intervention, I just dreamed and dreamed... But now that I am awake, let's see how things are between us, right?" And with those words, she moved her hand down to feel in what state he was. "Mmm," she commented, "all is quiet, down there... oops...!" As she was talking, Sully's senses had awoken and with her hand on his member, she felt him grow, a feeling so exciting, that her centre instantly reacted with the familiar pulsing and throbbing, stimulating her inside glands to secrete enough moisture to make their imminent joining the pleasure that it had always been until now. Sully, in turn, moved his hand down as well to probe her centre and, as usual, her readiness was something that would continue to amaze him for many more months to come, until he would know her so well that this phenomenon would no longer astonish him, but become part of their daily love life.

"Tell me how you want it, 'Chaela? A real _quickie_ or a slow one?" he murmured in her ear, exciting her beyond measure with his hot breath, continuing to arouse her further, saying: "I'll do whatever you want!" "I'd like to ride you," she managed to stutter, almost already completely out of her mind with passion, yet intent on telling him what would please her most, "so that you have both hands free to massage me, touch my breasts, and I can set the pace. Is that all right with you?" "Anything you want," and with those words, he turned on his back. She straddled him, anticipating the sensations she was sure she was going to feel by going down on him.

Her moisture made the joining of their bodies very easy, Sully sighed at the heavenly feelings this provoked in him. He let all his thoughts escape his mind, he closed his eyes and, without needing to see anything, he reached down to touch her centre and bring about her peak with his expert fingers. His other hand sought her breast, and, while teasing her nipple, he relished in the contractions which her inner muscles were exerting on his member while she was riding him. The now familiar sequence ran its course: her _almost there_ followed by her stifled, unladylike screech and his _aarrgghh, aarrgghh_ when he revelled in his release, his body convulsing a few times as he spilled inside of her. They both reached their pinnacle at almost the same moment, it was sheer magic...

"Shower?" he asked softly, after a while of snuggling and cuddling in each other's arms. "Mmm yes, please," she returned. Getting up from the bed, they stepped inside the bathroom and turned on the warm water. Sully took his task of washing his wife very literally, no spot on her body was forgotten, she relaxed under his touches and let waves of happiness wash over her mind like the warm water of the shower washed over her body. Towelling themselves dry, they took out the hair dryer and switched it on. Their respective long hair took some time to dry and, after that was done, they dressed themselves in the outfits they would travel in: the three-piece suit for Sully and Michaela's Chanel two-piece.


	57. Chapter 57

**Chapter 57** \- _A goodbye breakfast - Quinn Residence - a flight home - Boston - CS_

Walking down the stairs and stepping inside the dining room to have breakfast, Elizabeth looked up and was once more stunned by the beauty of this couple. They were an absolute joy for the eye. This time, they did not hold hands, but Sully had his arm around his wife's shoulders, and she had hers around his waist. It was evident that they wanted to be as close as possible to each other. "Good morning, my dear, Sully," Elizabeth acknowledged their arrival, "you look very happy this morning?" "We are happy, Mother," Michaela countered, "not happy to be leaving you, but happy to be together." "Well, I suppose going home certainly also must be nice for you two, I understand yours is a lovely home, Sully, located in splendid surroundings with plenty of nature around?" "Yes," Sully answered, "it's been in my family for a long time now, I'm lucky that my aunt left it to me to take care of. But most of all I'm thrilled that Michaela has taken such a liking to it." Sitting down side by side, they enjoyed a lovely, tasty breakfast.

Once the three were done eating, Elizabeth broke the silence "What would you have done Sully, if Michaela would not have liked your home? If she would have preferred to live in town, for example?" Sully pondered the question. He himself had, indeed, toyed with the eventuality that Michaela might not like the house, nor would she be willing to live so far out of town. He had come to a very logical conclusion and, with his usual honesty, he answered his mother-in-law: "Yes, I thought of that. I probably would've left it up to Michaela to decide where she wanted to live and I would have followed her there. You see, since I met her, a life without Michaela in it, is just not an option for me. Even if we would not have married, I would have remained in her vicinity to make sure she was doing all right. And my homestead, well, I might have looked for some family with small children to rent it from me for a modest monthly rental." He paused. Michaela cut in: "But luckily, Mother, the moment I saw the house, I fell in love with it. Without even having been inside, I knew I wouldn't mind living there, with Sully, of course!" "So you fell in love twice," Sully softly spoke, "first with me and then with my house...!"

Elizabeth was moved by their complicity. It may be true that they married very shortly after meeting each other, but apparently that would never be a problem. They definitely were on the same wavelength, not only in spirit, but also physically. Elizabeth was glad she had overheard the noises emanating from Michaela's room, it all proved to her that the intimacy between them was beyond doubt a guarantee for a happy future together. She chuckled, thinking of the way they looked at each other. Seldom had she witnessed two people so deep in love with each other. That too, vouched of the best for their future. Elizabeth hoped that one day they would be blessed with one or even more children. She was still amazed that Sully was ready to give up part or even all of his job to be there for his child or children, enabling Michaela to continue working as a doctor. By now, Elizabeth had come to the conclusion that Sully was indeed a man who did not care much about money. He was not interested to know the details of his wife's fortune and Michaela seemed all too happy to adapt and adopt such a modest way of life. Elizabeth sighed, she was eagerly looking forward to visit them in the near future.

By 9:30, Harrison announced that he was ready to drive out to the airport with Michaela and Sully. The _goodbyes_ were quickly said, Sully went upstairs to fetch their carry-on cases and Michaela went to the kitchen to give Martha a warm embrace, thanking her for all her good care. Traffic was fluid and after saying _goodbye_ to Harrison, thanking him too for making their stay such a pleasant one, they headed for the check-in desk. As they were crossing the large departure hall, they were totally unaware of the many glances people threw at them. Truth be told, they were a stunning pair, his good looks and her timeless beauty were a perfect combination and, from the way they held each other and looked at each other, it was clear that there was a deep, deep love running between them. The clerk at the check-in desk looked up as they approached. He gave them a big smile. _Good heavens_, he couldn't help but think, _what a beautiful couple this is!_

The flight was on time. Sully again marvelled at his luck to have such a wonderful wife at his side. Sitting down in the comfortable big seats in the business class, he mused that _yes_, he could easily get used to such luxury. But then, he wouldn't have minded being in economy either, living modestly had never been a problem for him. It was of course a lovely idea of Michaela to make this trip so special, the confrontation with Elizabeth had been far less of a disaster than he had anticipated. Sleeping in Michaela's room had been another thrill, to know that he was the _first_ man there, was certainly special as well. He felt flattered and blessed that his lonely life had taken a turn for the better.

He was pulled out of his musings by Michaela who, turning to face him, asked him: "Sully, is everything all right?" "Yeah, more than all right," he countered, leaning over to place a long, loving kiss on her cheek for confirmation. "Love you," he whispered, only for her to hear. Michaela slightly blushed at his declaration. "Love you too," she whispered back, looking in his eyes with all the love she felt for him. From afar, the hostess had been watching them. Like most people, she admired this splendid couple, apparently so deep in love with each other. She decided she would give them some special attention. Maybe a glass of Champagne, later on. She had noticed them whispering to each other and the light blush on the woman's face, made her conclude that the man must have said something very pleasant to provoke such a tender reaction.

Arriving spot on time in Colorado Springs, they looked out for Daniel. When they saw him, they waved. Daniel had seen them and after greeting him, they headed for his car. "Did all go well?" Daniel enquired. "Very well," Sully answered, "we had imagined it would be a lot worse, but this really turned out to be a most pleasant visit." Michaela nodded, she too was happy to have come a lot closer to her mother than had ever been the case. She was actually looking forward to her mother's visit. "You'll get to know my mother soon, Daniel," Michaela stated, "we have invited her for a visit and she is eager to come when all her societal activities allow her to be away for some time." "And you, Sully, is she not the dreaded mother-in-law of the fairy tales?" Daniel joked. "Not at all, I even call her by her first name and I managed to make her call me just _Sully!_" Nearing the homestead, they asked Daniel to come in for some refreshments, but the latter refused, saying he still had a few things to do in town. They said goodbye, knowing that next Monday they would meet at work again.


	58. Chapter 58

**Chapter 58** \- _A swim in the creek - Colorado Springs _

As soon as Daniel had left, they crashed into each other. "My god," Sully croaked, "I thought we'd never be alone, today has been one of the longest days of my life." Michaela moaned in his arms. She was giving in to her urges to feel him, to be skin-to-skin with him, their last lovemaking had been so many hours ago, that she was more than ready to experience it again. It had gotten near to dinner time. Breaking the kiss, Sully faced her and said: "I do have some food in the freezer, but we could also go and eat at Grace's, if you want. Or maybe Chinese takeaway? You choose." "I'd like to stay here," Michaela answered, "shall we go down to the freezer and have a look together?"

And so they went down to the cellar where the freezer was stacked with food. Sully opened it and together they chose a dish which they could heat up in the oven. They also took out a package of ice cream, to have a sweet dessert after the salty dish. Back in the kitchen Sully put the ice cream in the freezer compartment of the fridge and switched on the oven at the required temperature. "This will take a while," he said, placing the dish inside. "First the oven has to warm up and then the dish will need another 35 minutes before it'll be hot through and through." Michaela looked at him. Undeniably, they both thought of the same thing. _"Quickie?"_ Michaela seductively whispered, hardly able to restrain the longing she felt for him. Sully smiled, "Let's get out of these clothes first, I need to feel you, can hardly wait for that."

They ran upstairs and, once inside the bedroom, started tugging and pulling at each other's garments, frantic to be rid of them and to begin enjoying the _quickie_. Instead of piling their garments up in the customary heap on the floor, Michaela took care to properly fold them and place them neatly on the chair. Sully watched her, his naked wife turned him on no end, his arousal was instantly there as well, it had been there for quite a while already. He wondered if Daniel had declined their invitation because he knew they wanted - not to say _needed_ \- to be alone? In the aeroplane too, he had to do all he could to keep calm, his passion for his stunning wife was getting intenser by the day. Especially now that he knew what extreme pleasure and intense feelings she could provoke in him, it was more and more difficult to behave when they were in company. He thought back to their day on the beach. How wonderful had that been! Simply _paradise_, he mused. Making love in the open air had been magical...

Michaela, having finished taking proper care of their expensive garments, walked over to him, as he reclined on the bed, leaning against the beautiful headboard. The longing in his eyes was evident, as was his arousal, sending out a silent invitation to her. _"My god, you're so beautiful, 'Chaela,"_ he croaked. "So are you, Sully," she countered. "What are we going to do? Must be a quick _quickie_ or the dish in the over will burn." "Can't burn, I put the timer, so if we wanna go slow, we can." "Don't know if I can stand _slow,_" she stammered, "I'm almost exploding, let's start and later on, after the meal, we can do the _slow version_." "Is okay with me," he whispered, amazed at his own endurance and the fact that he just didn't seem to get enough of her. It struck him that Michaela also did not seem to mind their frequent lovemaking. _One more thing we have in common,_ he mused. He held out his arms to embrace her. "Let me straddle you," she proposed. He slid down and gladly let her take the lead.

Once in place, he moved his hands to her backside, kneading her buttocks, those two delicious mounds that he had neglected a bit, he thought. Must give them more attention next time. He refrained from checking if she was ready. So far, she had always been ready, and he assumed this time would be the same. And it was. As she straddled him, she lifted herself up a bit and lowered herself smoothly down on him, eliciting moans of pleasure not only from him, but also from herself. This lovemaking really was something she would never want to be without for the rest of her life, she thought. Never in her entire life had she felt such intense sensations, her body tingled in all its recesses, her blood raced and her heartbeat reached unbelievable speeds.

Moving up and down on him, she soon lost herself in the emotions. Sully had moved one of his hands to her breasts, the other to her centre. In no time she reached her peak. The familiar: _"Almost there! Yeeesss, yeeesss, Suullyy!"_ echoed in the room and flew out of the open window, for mother nature to hear and rejoice that her children were having such a good time with each other. Her squeals and spasms were his undoing, he let go and grunting loudly, no need to stifle the noise any longer, he spilled inside of her.

From the night table, Michaela picked up some tissues and pressed them against her centre, thus avoiding the risk of staining the bedcover. She got up and headed for the bathroom. Sully chuckled, women always thought of everything, he mused. Next time he would think of reaching for the tissues and giving them to her... He wondered when her monthly would happen, she had said, any moment from now, so it must be imminent. He knew very little about women's monthlies, just what Cloud Dancing had told him about it. He hoped Michaela would share her knowledge with him, he wanted to know everything there was to know about her, he wanted to share every minute of her life with her, to know her deeper thoughts, her opinion on many things counted so much to him, this connection he felt they had, was something unreal, unheard of. He wanted to make her proud of him, the worst thing that could ever happen, would be that she would regret to have ever married him. The thought alone almost suffocated him, he sent up a prayer to the Spirits that such a regret would never cross her mind, it would mean the end of him. It was as if he had stopped existing the moment he met her, as if he only lived through her. He wondered if she was having these or similar reflections on his account, maybe one day they could talk about it too...

Sully got up and went to the bathroom as well, a quick wash of himself was always a good thing to do. Michaela saw him enter while she was busy cleaning herself. Already at a very early stage of their relationship, she had been most pleased to notice that personal hygiene was very important to Sully, he was a very clean man, who never failed to wash himself thoroughly, often taking a shower, lately most of the time with her, it is true, and those were showers not so much for washing, but more for touching, kissing and caressing each other's bodies. She smiled at him. "Are we ready for our meal?" she asked. "Should be hot enough by now," he replied, continuing: "you wanna get dressed?" he suggestively asked. "Oh Sully!" she gushed, "eating in the nude?!" "Why not? No one here, just the two of us. Neighbours are so far away they'd need a telescope to see us and visitors are supposed to knock first before coming in!" Butterflies besieged her belly once more, this husband of hers was surely the most sexy person in the universe, she concluded. "Okay, in the nude it is..." she agreed wholeheartedly. _"That's my girl,"_ Sully whispered in her ear, at the same time tightly locking her in a loving embrace.

In the kitchen, he took out the dish with the food and motioned that they would sit down on the couch. Placing the dish on the small table together with a big bottle of water and two glasses, he sat down, not a trace of shyness on his face, displaying himself in all his glory, his gorgeous body a vision of pure strength and natural beauty. She sat down between his legs, she felt him against her lower back, causing tingles and butterflies to compete for priority in her belly and spine. She sighed. "This is too good to be true, Sully, don't you fear that one day it will be over and then we have to work to make a success of our marriage?" He chuckled. "First of all, I don't think this will ever be over and, secondly, we'll worry about that when it happens to us. For the moment, let's just be plain happy, with no thoughts of any future _what ifs_, okay?" "You always know how to keep me from fretting," she mused, "thank you Sully for being such a fabulous husband for me, I love you so much..." "And I love you, my _hesta-noo'otse,"_ he replied.

Picking up their forks, they started eating the warm dish. It was a tasty _Moussaka_, a Greek minced meat and potato dish, with lots of spices. The water was nice and fresh, the cool air wafted through the bay windows that Sully had opened to allow the evening breeze to bring some coolness into the interior of the living room. They had some of the ice cream, feeding each other spoonfuls of the delicious sweet treat. "Are we ready for the slow version of the _quickie_ now?" Sully asked. Michaela looked at him. "I would like to go down to the creek, Sully, do you think that is possible?" "Yeah, sure," he said, "just lemme get out the lantern, the sun will set soon and to get back, we'd better have somethin' to light up the path."

He stood up and went to fetch the lantern. "Sully?!" she called out, "aren't we supposed to get dressed?" "No need," he called back, "just put on your sandals to protect your feet. There is no one in quite a few miles' radius, we don't need any clothes." Michaela tingled all over, this was too exciting, roaming the land surrounding the homestead in the nude, just sandals on her feet, it all was too fabulous to ever be questioned. She fetched their sandals, which were neatly tucked away in the cabinet near the entrance and waited for Sully to return with the lantern. She also took a few towels, because if they were to go for a swim, they'd want to dry themselves afterwards.

Sully was anticipating a lot of fun for he knew that Michaela was in for quite a few surprises which were awaiting his lovely wife down by the creek. Slipping on their sandals, they got on the way, taking the path leading slightly downhill to reach the creek. Michaela felt more than funny walking in the nude, she had never done anything remotely resembling such boldness. She hoped and prayed that Sully was right and that there were no people around who could surprise her in this outfit, or better, the absence of it... The sun had not yet set, so the path downhill was still clearly outlined.

Sully laid his hand around her shoulders, enjoying the feel of her smooth skin. From time to time he stopped them and pulled her towards him for a deep kiss. The promise of the slow lovemaking they were going to enjoy near the creek, was exciting him more and more. After a while, Michaela heard the sound of splashing water and she knew they were now nearing the creek. Around the bend, hidden in the trees, she saw a white wooden shed, or better, a very neat cabin, looking as if it had been put there only recently. "Sully!" she cried out, "what is this cabin?" "A cabin," he said dryly. "Yes, I can see that," she said, irritated that he did not elucidate more. "C'm'ere," Sully said, "gotta tell you something."

Opening the door of the cabin, taking off his sandals, he stepped inside, motioning for her to do the same. Instantly a light switched on, illuminating the interior. Dying with curiosity, Michaela stepped out of her sandals, placing them beside Sully's outside the door. Once inside the cabin, she looked around. Stunned by what she saw, she looked at Sully, who chuckled at her bewilderment. First of all, the cabin was a lot bigger than it had seemed to be from the outside. It was a complete living unit, with a kitchen block, a shower cabin, two very comfortable looking chairs with a small table in front and, to her utter astonishment, a large bed. Had Sully lied to her and had he used this cabin for some amorous tryst? Immediately she pushed that thought aside. Sully would never lie to her about something so fundamental. Then what was this?

He lay down on the bed and motioned for her to join him, to which of course she gladly obliged. He took her into a tight embrace and started to talk. "To this spot, Michaela, I used to come whenever I had lost my way. That happened quite often to me, and here, surrounded by nature, far from the rest of the world, I found the peace and quiet I needed to think and to find my way back. I have never shown this spot to anyone."

Michaela was awed by his words. The fact that he shared this with her now, meant that he saw her as an integral part of his life. His confession touched her, his sincerity was very precious to her. "But the cabin?" she ventured. "Coming here, I sometimes spent the night here, taking a sleeping bag with me. But then I had the idea that it would be nice to have a cabin with a bit more comfort. You see, all the hours I spent here, I've been thinking of you."

"Of me?!" she interrupted him, "you didn't know me, how could you think of me?!" "I was so lonely, 'Chaela, I hoped that one day I would meet someone to share my life with, someone who would understand me, who would take me the way I am. My _soul mate_, so to say. If ever I found her, I knew I wanted to have a cabin to be comfortable with her, to offer her not just a sleeping bag on the barren soil, but a real bed. Some months ago, Michaela, you stepped into my life, you took away my loneliness, you have, in such a short time, become the sunshine of my days."

He paused. "I would have loved the sleeping bag too, Sully," Michaela said softly, "I can easily live in a modest way, as long as you are by my side." "I know that now, but I didn't know that back then," was his only comment.

Michaela was dumbfounded by his words. As if he had been waiting for her all these years, it was unbelievable. A thought struck her. "Sully, I also have been feeling lonely for so many years, I also hoped to meet one day a companion to be by my side. When we met, I had no choice, the attraction I felt to you was so strong, that I knew that something was happening to me that I could not explain. But when I noticed that you avoided me, it hurt me a lot. We can thank Daniel for helping us finding out what was in store for us." "I'm sorry I hurt you when I avoided you. I was scared by what I was feeling whenever you were near, and I didn't want to be taken for a fool. You came from such a different world, from a wealthy family, you're a doctor, no way did I ever see a chance of you wanting to have anything to do with me. But then, luckily, you didn't hesitate to speak to Daniel, so we could finally find each other," Sully reminded her, continuing: "and I will never let you go, trust me."

"I can't help it that I was born into the Quinn family, I didn't ask for that, Sully. But I never was interested in their highfalutin societal life. The only thing I went to with pleasure, were the balls, because I love to dance. By the way, do you dance, Sully?" He chuckled. "You'll be surprised, but yes, I do. Cloud Dancing and Snow Bird insisted that I learn to dance, so I did. Daniel is an excellent dancer too. Would you like to dance with me?" "I'd love to," she confessed.

Sully stood up and walked over to the CD player. Picking up a stack of CD's, he quickly skimmed through them and chose one, switching on the equipment on and sliding the CD in. The music filling the cabin was heavenly, Michaela had never heard music like that before, but it was fast enough for them to dance on. Sully held out his hand: "May I, _my lady?"_ "Sully! _In the nude?!_" "Yep, in the nude, no one to see us, just the two of us, c'm'on, you'll like it," he promised. Fleetingly she wondered if Sully had done this before, but like her previous suspicion of a tryst in the cabin, she dismissed the idea. As for the dance in the nude, she was sure she would like it. Dancing all naked with her husband, the most gorgeous man on earth, with the promise of a _quickie_ slow version, a swim in the creek, it was all so overwhelming that she trembled with anticipation.

Sully, feeling her tremor, anxiously asked her: "You cold?" "No, not at all, excited and overwhelmed, this is all so fantastic, Sully, my nerves can hardly cope with so many emotions." And with those words, she let him take her in his arms and together they danced to the soft music, dizzy with love, admiring each other's dancing skills. "You are indeed a very good dancer, Mr Sully, so you're not only a good kisser, a passionate lover, but an excellent dancer as well. And that, you know, makes me the happiest woman in the world." "And me the happiest man in the world," he returned, tightening his embrace and boldly rubbing himself against her. She moaned, "The slow _quickie_ is coming into view," she prophesied, knowing that this dancing would arouse them both beyond reason, and that, within a few moments, they would have to join and satiate the hunger they had for each other.

It didn't take long before Sully whispered in her ear: "'Chaela, are you ready for our slow _quickie?_ I can't wait much longer, I'm getting too excited to dance any longer, I need a different kind of dance right now." "So do I, Sully," and with those words, they stumbled back to the bed, where she let herself fall down, waiting for him to join her. Instead of positioning himself between her legs, he turned around. Knowing what was coming, she sighed, this was one of the nicest things they were wont to do, caressing their intimate spots with their mouths and tongues. Emotions and sensations were flying high as they endeavoured to give each other as much pleasure as possible. Sully carefully monitored how far she was before reaching her climax, he wanted to be inside her when it occurred, her muscles crushing his member was such an intense feeling that he wouldn't miss it for nothing on earth. Michaela in the meantime was relishing the feeling of caressing him with her mouth. From his reactions and moans, she knew he was almost reaching his climax too.

Before hearing the familiar words, Sully sat up and turned around, disengaging himself from her grasp, "I wanna be inside you when you come over the edge," he murmured. She nodded, she knew how much he liked to experience her peak whilst being inside of her. She lay down on her back and Sully positioned himself on top of her. Their dance of love continued, Sully sustained himself on one arm, while with his other hand he caressed her centre. Not long afterwards, he heard the familiar words _almost there, yeeesss, yeeesss, Suullyy!_ and she let go. Since they were all alone, she did not try to stifle her screech, nor did Sully try to lower his voice when letting go. _"Arrrggghhh, arrrggghhh,"_ he went and together they rode the waves of marital bliss.

Panting and sweating, they took some time to get back to normal. "I don't think I'll ever get enough of this," Michaela whispered in Sully's ear, revelling in his body now fully covering hers, not at all incommodated by his weight, actually liking it. "Neither do I," he whispered back, "it's something so special, did you ever dream of this, before we discovered the world of intimacy?" he wondered. "Never ever," she admitted, "my friends never gave any hint whatsoever that making love could be what it has worked out to be for me." "And for me," he added.

Even though the sun had set, it was nice and warm in the cabin. A bit too warm, Sully found and he got up, handing her some tissues to clean herself up a little. "Shall we go for a dip in the creek?" he proposed. "Mmm, good idea," and getting up as well, she disposed of the tissues and followed him outside. He had picked up the towels and, stepping into their sandals, they walked down the path to the creek.

"It's not very deep," Sully announced, "but it's deep enough to dunk ourselves." "Is it cold?" "Naw, not now, in winter it gets cold and even freezes, but now, in summer, the water is lukewarm. It's not a very fast flowing creek, so during the day the water heats up with the sun." He was right. Michaela pondered that being in the nude had its advantages, they could without delay step into the water. Sticking out her foot, she felt that the water was indeed lukewarm.

Slowly she let herself sink into the small pool, Sully followed her, taking care that she wouldn't lose her footing. It felt good to give each other a wash, the water was clean and pure. "Can we drink this water?" she enquired. "Don't know," Sully answered, "I never tried it. Better not do that, you never know what people upstream have been throwing in." She nodded, that was one thing where mankind still had a lot to learn, taking care of the environment was a struggle that had been going on for some decades now.

Sitting down on a rock in the water, Sully encircled her with his arms. "Come and cuddle a bit here with me," he invited her. "We've just made love, do you need cuddling already now?" she teased him. "I need you day and night, every minute of the day, and every moment of the night," he confessed. "My life has changed so drastically now that you're sharing it with me, I don't know how I'll get through the day when we will be at work. It is not going to be easy." "We'll have to concentrate on our work, Sully, we can't risk making mistakes because we're so deep in love and thinking of making love with each other every moment of the day," she warned him. "I know," he replied, "but that doesn't make it any easier."

The sun had gone down, the sounds of the night were slowly taking possession of the trees surrounding them. "'Chaela," Sully began, "isn't your monthly due shortly?" "Yes, I think so," she said, "it might start during the night or otherwise tomorrow. Why do you ask?" "I would like to know more about it, does it hurt, what do you feel, how long does it last, I know so little about these things. Now that you're my wife, I would like to know. But if you don't want to tell me, I can understand. After all, it is very personal and I don't mind if you do not want to share this with me," he stated. "I will gladly answer your questions, Sully, so, yes, sometimes it hurts, I have a pain in my back, or I get a headache, but those pains are easily cured by an ordinary painkiller. And the first two days the bleeding is quite heavy, but after that it slows down and for me, the fourth day it is normally over. It is different for each woman, what I have and feel is the most common form, but there are also women who faint, who bleed a lot more, I am lucky in that respect." "Thank you for telling me, I am glad you're not having a hard time with that."

"I also have a question," Michaela began. "Go ahead," he urged, "I have no secrets for you, you can ask me anything and I will always try to answer you truthfully." "Well, when we were dancing in the nude, which was fabulous by the way, I was wondering if you had ever done that before with another woman?" Sully burst out laughing, "You must be joking! Michaela, before you, I was so scared of women that I kept away from them as far as possible. My dates were just silly teenager dates, some kissing and that was it. And it always felt so wrong, so nothing ever came of it. Later on, when I was older, I always refused any attempt by any woman trying to get me to ask her for a date. Daniel said I was bein' ridiculous, that bein' with a woman was one of the most wonderful moments in his life, so I should get over my shyness and find myself a nice girl. But I never did. Until I met you, and even with you, I was scared. I'm lucky that you took the lead there and that Daniel did the right thing to push me to ask you for that walk, otherwise we would still be watchin' each other from a distance, wonderin' why we are so attracted to each other."

"Funny how life sometimes takes a course that we do not expect," Michaela reflected. "When I moved out to Colorado Springs, my mother said she hoped that I would find a suitable husband here. But she of course was thinking of some doctor or high ranking CEO of some big multinational, someone she could brag about in her social circle." "About me she can't brag, I suppose?" "Oh yes, she will. The fact that you lived with the Cheyenne and that you speak their language fluently, will make you quite the talk of the town in her circle. And don't forget, maintenance engineer may not sound as being the ranking she would have liked, she will definitely relate that you are in charge of life-saving equipment and that will definitely make a huge impression as well."

"Will it be enough over the years, 'Chaela? I can't live without you anymore. If you were to fall in love with another man, it would be the end of me." She looked at him, saw the fear in his eyes and realised the responsibility she had taken on by marrying him. "You know, Sully, I have never been in love with any boy or man, I fell in love with you and I simply can't imagine ever falling in love with someone else. So please, don't worry about that, you're the love of my life, no one will ever come between us. But maybe you will fall in love with another woman one day, that would be the end of me, believe me." "That will never happen," he assured her.

They sealed their declaration of love with a long, leisurely kiss. Sully cupped her breasts and played with the nipples. They instantly hardened, as did his member, she noticed not without pride that he could be so quickly aroused, just by touching her breasts. Leaving her breast, Sully moved one hand down to her centre, to massage her once more. She moaned with pleasure. "Are we having an _encore?_" she whispered, getting excited at the sole idea. "Only if you want it too," he answered, realising that his libido might not always correspond to hers. She might want to take a break from their very frequent lovemaking, he thought. "I always want you, it seems that since we got married, it has been one endless sequence of making love, I simply can't think of anything else I want to do," she murmured. "Turn around," he whispered, "straddle me and we'll make love in the water, another _first time,"_ he softly laughed.

She did as he said and, lifting herself up, she slowly lowered herself on him, bending towards his head to fetch his lips in hers. Kissing him was heaven too, being joined with him was exhilarating and reaching her peak was the crown on their union. It was almost dark now, stars had started to appear in the sky and the waxing crescent of the moon was sending down its beams of white light, illuminating the pool and the lovers in it. "How do you like to make love under the stars?" he softly asked. "It's like a fairy tale," she answered, "I feel blessed, peaceful and in a while I know I will feel completely sated once you will have made me go crazy." "You make me go crazy too," and with those words, he increased the upwards thrusts of his hips, making them both moan out loudly before reaching their pinnacle.

They got out of the water and wrapped the towels around their bodies. Sully lit the lantern and, slipping on their sandals, they slowly walked back to the cabin. From there, they took the path up to the homestead. Every now and then, they stopped for a long kiss, softly speaking words of love to each other, telling how lovely it was to be out in the wilderness of his domain, free to make love in the nude, because there was no one around to spy on them. Michaela thought back to their talk on the subject of children. If they were to have a child, their freedom to make love at any given moment of the day or the night would be severely restricted, a child would mean feedings, nappies, soothing a baby's crying, in short, responsibilities to be taken care of. The total freedom they were enjoying now, would be gone. So yes, she understood why it was important for them to have many more months to be totally free to enjoy themselves. She made a mental note to investigate how to practise birth control without having to recur to condoms or pills. She remembered having read something on how to monitor exactly when the ovulation took place, that might be something for them to try.

Her musings were interrupted by the homestead coming into view. It was indeed a lovely home, she thought. It would be home for the rest of her life and Sully would be an integral part of that life. "We're home, Mrs Sully," he tenderly spoke to her, continuing: "our life together has begun, welcome to my world. I will love you till the end of my days."

**The End**

_A/N: I wish to thank everybody for reading my story. From the 'Story Stats' I have seen that I have readers from all over the world, it really makes writing worthwhile! Special thanks to all the other DQ fanfic writers, only after reading the 1500+ existing stories, did I have the courage to write one myself. Inevitably I was influenced by other writers, so if any scene in my story sounds familiar, I can assure you that I would never revert to copy-paste, all my writing originates from my own fantasy._  
_What should have been a 'shorty', became a lot longer. A sequel to this fanfic is already in my head, I'll just have to type it out. Should you never see this sequel, then you will know that I did not survive the surgery I have to undergo in a few days. I am not afraid, I have had a very full life, I would love to have a few more years, but, as you all well know, sometimes these things are out of our control. _

_Update: surgery went fine, I'm still with you and in a few days I will start on the sequel!_


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